Business & Money | Tuesday 2 August, 2016 12:49 pm |

Emirates NBD, one of the leading banks in the region, has launched pilot initiatives aimed at creating a better work environment for expectant and new mothers. With the introduction of a private nursing room for women who are breastfeeding and convenient parking spaces for expectant mothers, the bank is determined to evolve into an institution that empowers women to maintain a healthy work-life balance by providing support to both its staff and their families.

Recognizing the physical and emotional health benefits of breastfeeding for both mother and child, the bank will pilot a nursing room for working mothers to express milk in a private and secure location at their Head Office building in Deira. The room will have two partitioned nursing stations with comfortable seating, folding tables to place pump or other items on, a refrigerator for milk storage, a sink for clean-up and a waiting area for other mothers should the nursing stations be occupied. To ensure full privacy, accessibility to the nursing rooms will only be granted via an access card. This will also help the bank evaluate demand and plan for increased capacity, if required.

The bank has also assigned designated covered parking spots for expectant mothers offering them a safe, reliable and covered place to park with a shorter walking distance from their cars to the work station. A total of nine spots have been reserved for expectant mothers which will be painted and signed to indicate use by permit only. A privilege pass will be granted to the bank’s expecting staff upon request, with prioritised access for women who have crossed 16 weeks of pregnancy or have mobility issues.

Lubna Qassim, Executive Vice President, Group General Counsel & Company Secretary of Emirates NBD, notes: “As the leading bank in the country, we support our female workforce. We set an example by action. We have initiated a pilot programme for our expectant and nursing mothers, by providing reserved car parking spaces for expectant mothers and secure and private nursing rooms for breastfeeding mothers. Through these initiatives, we hope to not only support our female employees, but also be role models in the industry to encourage our partners and other companies to address the specific needs of working mothers and to extend support and facilitate women to return to work post-delivery.”