Expressed delivery! Courier service for bankers’ breast milk

JUGGLING a career and childcare is never easy. But a top investment bank is taking steps to help its new mothers – with a breast milk courier service.

Goldman Sachs, the US bank renowned for its high salaries and tough working hours, has launched a ‘milkship’ scheme aimed at closing the gap between work and home life.

The delivery service allows breast milk to be delivered to the young children of staff who cannot be with their families because of work commitments.

An internal memo states: ‘To further support the firm’s commitment to working parents, the Human Capital Management division recently launched breast milk shipping programmes for working mothers who are travelling on business.

‘Through LifeCare’s milkship, which is available at no cost, working mothers who are based in the US can safely ship their breast milk home when on business travel.’ New mothers who are based outside the US, including the bank’s 6,000 employees who work in its London office, will be reimbursed for breast milk shipping costs incurred on work trips. Goldman Sachs also said it would pay for them to hire a hotel room fridge, if required.

The bank also offers lactation rooms, pre-natal fitness classes and on-site day care.

Other companies to run a milk shipping scheme include IBM, Twitter and Accenture. The perk originated in the US, which is the only country in the developed world that does not expect employers to offer any paid maternity leave.