Jersey politician’s remarks ‘indicative of casual sexism’
A CONTROVERSIAL Jersey politician has caused uproar among local mothers after he called breastfeeding a ‘fad’.
Constable John Le Bailly expressed his views during a States of Jersey debate on family friendly legislation.
The Assembly agreed that all new parents, male and female, should be offered 52 weeks off work.
The package of changes will also allow women to request breastfeeding breaks at work, while employers must take ‘reasonable steps’ to provide facilities for breastfeeding.
Constable Le Bailly voted against the plan and made some controversial remarks.
‘This parental issues affects all businesses, large and small, they understand the principle – they don’t understand the lack of consultation.
‘I have it on good authority that this breastfeeding thing is a current fad. Many women are unable to breastfeed.’
Anita Davies, of Nurturing Birth & Beyond Guernsey, said she was mortified to hear the comments, but she welcomed the debate because it raised awareness of the ‘casual sexism’ that many new mothers experience.
‘Breastfeeding brings so many health benefits for the mother and child, and it is a natural process that has sustained us for thousands of years.’
On the local NCT Facebook page, users were horrified at the suggestion that breastfeeding in public was an ostentatious show, and that women should be made to feel embarrassed and uncomfortable.
Sasha Kazantseva-Miller, from the group Island Mums, said the Jersey politician’s remark showed how far removed he was from the realities of modern families.
On the wider debate of extending parental leave, Mrs Kazantseva-Miller congratulated Jersey on its progressive stance.
‘I would love to see Guernsey take note of this legislation and come up with our own version to suit the needs of Guernsey families and workplaces.’
The island’s current legislation on maternity leave states that Guernsey companies only need to offer two weeks leave to new mothers.
Deputy Victoria Oliver, who has recently given birth to twins, called the situation ridiculous.
‘I believe it would be good to have legislation in place for maternity and paternity, Guernsey is so far behind many jurisdictions.’
‘Many companies offer better than two weeks, but each company is different.’
Deputy Lindsay De Sausmarez is another campaigner for equal rights, and she said Guernsey needed to grapple with the parental leave laws.
‘There was a report out earlier this year by PwC (Channel Islands Women in Work Report 2019) that showed that Guernsey is well behind key competitor jurisdictions in terms of the gender pay gap and that we are not fulfilling our economic potential as a result.
‘Parental leave is an important factor in this, Guernsey’s current lack of statutory maternity or parental leave is part of the problem in my view.’
On the issue of whether breastfeeding is a ‘fad’, both deputies were shocked at the comment, and agreed that people passing judgement about parental choices was unhelpful, and no one should be made to feel guilty about how they choose to feed their baby.
