Chair, Managing Partner: Bill Voge
Headquarters: Across the globe
Website: www.lw.com
Innovative Program for Women
Leading global law firm Latham & Watkins LLP recently launched an innovative program for nursing mothers who travel for work – the first of its kind in the legal industry.
The Breast Milk Shipping Program is available to Latham personnel, their spouses traveling on business whose companies do not offer a similar benefit, and clients attending Latham-sponsored retreats or conferences. The program allows women to safely and easily ship or check their breast milk, with Latham handling the logistics and covering the cost.
Spearheaded by Latham’s Parent Lawyers Group, Diversity Leadership Committee, and Global HR Department, the program demonstrates the firm’s commitment to helping working women achieve work-life balance and supporting choices they make for their families.
The program launched in September 2016, after a year of planning and piloting around the world. The program joins Latham’s other programs in helping mothers and fathers feel supported and empowered as they return to work, such as reduced pace and various remote working tools.
The firm provides nursing mothers with a proprietary kit, containing the resources necessary to ship the breast milk or store it as checked luggage, including six NUK® nursing bags (holding six ounces each). It includes a specially designed cooling unit that chills the breast milk to the proper temperature with a touch of a button, then keeps the milk cool for up to 72 hours; a shipping box and tape with which to seal it; a Sharpie marker for labelling; and a shipping label with tracking information. Inside the United States, the unit can be shipped to the mother’s business-travel location, then express shipped back to the mother’s residence or the location of her child. Outside the United States, the unit can be shipped to the mother’s business-travel location, then used to transport the milk as checked baggage on return travel.
