Ohio court backs company in breast-pumping case

COLUMBUS (AP) — The Ohio Supreme Court says a company didn’t discriminate against a new mother who was fired for taking unauthorized breaks to pump milk from her breasts.

The high court ruled Thursday that LaNisa Allen failed to prove that Totes/Isotoner Corp., an outerwear manufacturer near Cincinnati, violated Ohio’s Pregnancy Discrimination Act.

The court upheld a lower court’s ruling that said Allen was fired for taking an unauthorized, extra break. Allen acknowledged in a deposition that she had taken breaks without her employer’s knowledge.

Justice Paul E. Pfeifer dissented, saying the lower court failed to explain why Allen’s trips to the restroom were different from restroom trips other employees made outside scheduled break times.