Mothers' rights

Rights
Theoretical distinctions
Claim rights and liberty rights Individual and group rights Natural rights and legal rights Negative and positive rights
Human rights
Civil and political Economic, social and cultural Three generations
Rights by beneficiary
Accused Animals Children Consumers Creditors Deaf Disabled Elders Fetuses Farmers Humans Natives Intersex Kings LGBT (Transgender) Men Minorities Parents (Mothers, Fathers) Patients Peasants Plants Prisoners Robots States Students Victims Women Workers Youth
Other groups of rights
Assembly Association Asylum Civil liberties Digital Education Fair trial Food Free migration Health Housing Linguistic Movement Property Reproductive Rest and leisure Self defense Self-determination of people Speech Sexuality Water and sanitation
v t e

Part of a series on
Feminism
History Feminist history History of feminism Women's history American British Canadian German Waves First Second Third Fourth Timelines Women's suffrage Muslim countries US Other women's rights Women's suffrage by country Austria Australia Canada India Japan Kuwait Liechtenstein New Zealand Spain Second Republic Francoist Switzerland United Kingdom Cayman Islands Wales United States states
Intersectional variants Fat Lesbian Lesbian of color Radical lesbianism Separatist Sex-positive Lipstick Stiletto Transfeminism Postgenderism Vegetarian ecofeminism Socialist Anarchist Queer Jineology Marxist Critical theory Standpoint Materialist Ecofeminist Postcolonial Global Transnational Xenofeminism Multicultural Africana womanism Black Hip hop Lesbian Ratchet Chicana Lesbian Indigenous Native American Multiracial Romani Womanism
Conservative variants Anti-abortion Anti-pornography Equity Eugenic Femonationalism Maternal Postfeminism Neofeminism State Carceral Imperial Embedded Trans-exclusionary Victim White
Religious variants Atheist Buddhist Christian Mormon New Womanist Asian Neopagan Dianic Wicca Reclaiming Ecofeminist Hindu Islamic Jewish Orthodox Sikh
Movements and ideologies Analytical Anti-fascist Cyberfeminism HCI Networked Ecofeminism Individualist Liberal Difference Cultural Equality Social Labor Libertarian Post-structural French Postmodern Radical Political lesbianism Separatist Women's liberation Technofeminism
Concepts Literature Children's literature Discrimination against transgender women Effects on society Equality Female education Female genital mutilation Femicide Feminism in culture Feminist movement African-American women's suffrage movement Art movement In hip hop Feminist stripper Gender equality Girl power Honor killing Internalized sexism International Girl's Day and Women's Day Language reform Male privilege Matriarchal religion Media Men in feminism Misogyny Oedipus complex Opposition to feminism Pro-feminism Protofeminism Purplewashing Reproductive justice Sex workers' rights Sexual harassment Sexual objectification Toxic masculinity Transmisogyny Triple oppression Violence against women War on women Women-only space Women's health Women's rights Women in the workforce
Outlooks Bicycling and feminism Criticism of marriage Views on BDSM Views on pornography Views on prostitution Views on sexual orientation Views on sexuality Views on transgender topics
Theory Feminist method Gender studies Gender mainstreaming Gynocentrism Kyriarchy Male gaze Matriarchy Women's studies Men's studies Patriarchy Écriture féminine Areas of study Anthropology Archaeology Architecture Art Art criticism Literary criticism Film theory Science fiction Biology Composition studies Criminology Pathways perspective Economics FDPA Geography International relations Constructivism Legal theory Pedagogy Philosophy Aesthetics Empiricism Epistemology Ethics Justice ethics Existentialism Metaphysics science Political ecology Political theory Pornography Psychology Therapy Revisionist mythology Sex wars Sexology Sociology Technoscience Theology womanist theology
By country Albania Australia Bangladesh Canada China Democratic Republic of the Congo Denmark Egypt Ethiopia Finland France Germany Ghana Greece Hong Kong India Indonesia Iran Iraq Republic of Ireland Israel Italy Japan Latin America Argentina Brazil Chile Haiti Honduras Mexico Paraguay Trinidad and Tobago Lebanon Malaysia Mali Nepal Netherlands New Zealand Nigeria Northern Cyprus Norway Pakistan Philippines Poland Russia Syria Saudi Arabia South Africa South Korea Sweden Taiwan Thailand Turkey Vietnam Ukraine United Kingdom United States History of women
Lists and categories Lists Articles Feminists by nationality Literature American feminist literature Feminist comic books Feminist songs Conservative feminisms Ecofeminist authors Feminist art critics Feminist economists Feminist philosophers Feminist poets Feminist rhetoricians Jewish feminists Muslim feminists Feminist parties Suffragists and suffragettes Women's rights activists Women's studies journals Women's suffrage organizations Categories Women's rights by country Feminists by nationality
Feminism portal
v t e

Mother's rights are the legal obligations for expecting mothers, existing mothers, and adoptive mothers in the United States. Issues that involve mothers' rights include labor rights, breast feeding, and family rights.

Labor rights

Labor rights for mothers in the United States consist of maternal leave during the various stages of pregnancy as well as when the baby is born and afterwards. They also include work procedures for new mothers returning to their workplace after giving birth. The time women are allowed to take off for childbirth is referred to as maternity leave. Each state and company has its own laws regarding the allotted time allowed off for family leave, as well as any other support given to new mothers. The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA) has set laws for companies across the board setting the minimum requirements for maternity leave. The regulations set by FMLA apply to mothers, fathers, and adoptive parents. The act requires most companies to allow up to 12 weeks of non-paid family leave. Furthermore, US Law protects workers against harassment of and employers that discriminate against a worker based on being pregnant, if they were pregnant, or intend to become pregnant under the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Pregnant workers may also be able to request adjustments in their workdays to accommodate their health such as breaks to the bathroom.

Breast feeding

Breast feeding is the act of supplying nutrients to an infant with human breast milk by means of breast or bottle. There are specific laws in place in each state regarding breast feeding as well as federal laws. Every state except for Idaho has a law that allows women to breast-feed in any public or private location. Although the majority of states allow breast feeding anywhere, only 29 states exempt breast feeding from public indecency laws, meaning the exposure of nudity in public. The federal laws concerning breast feeding mothers relate to working mothers. Once mothers return to work there are also laws set in place for nursing mothers while they are at work. Employers are required to allow these mothers reasonable break time when they express the need to discard their milk supply for up to a year after they have given birth. They are also required to provide a private and secluded place, other than a restroom, for these mothers to discard their milk supply. These laws can be found in The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010.

Family rights for mothers

Mother's have many rights that relate to family law including making decisions on behalf of their children including medical decisions as well as who is around their child. Mother's also have the legal right to pursue their child's father for child support.

Parental Rights

Each state has their own specific laws regarding a mother's legal rights and responsibility to her child. All legal statutes declare that the mother or parents are allowed to make the decisions regarding a child's education, religion, medical care, and deciding where the child will live. A biological mother, fathers married to the mother before or after the child's birth, and as of 2003, fathers on their child's birth certificate are automatically given this legal right for their child.

Child Custody and Support

Although a mother has certain custody rights when there is a battle for custody it is still the court's responsibility to choose the best circumstance for the child.