KINGSTON, Jamaica— Caribbean Cement Company Limited has implemented a lactation room for breastfeeding mothers so they can express milk away from the intrusion of other employees and the public.

This addition, Caribbean Cement said, is part of the company’s thrust for greater diversity and inclusion in the workplace.

The lactation room was introduced on Wednesday to coincide with World Breastfeeding Week, which is observed between August 1-7 by some 120 countries and is aimed at bringing awareness to the roles people have in protecting, promoting, and supporting breastfeeding.

Managing Director of Caribbean Cement Company Limited, Yago Castro, explained that the introduction of the lactation room is among the steps being taken by the cement company to ensure a safe and welcoming workplace for people to collaborate effectively without fear and discomfort.

“We believe that once an organisation accommodates various needs, everyone can thrive professionally. We all have some differences from each other, whether it be gender, age, race, religion, civil status, ethnicity, disability condition, or sexual orientation. These differences may lead to discrimination, aggression, and or conflict between employees if there isn’t a culture that fosters acceptance and inclusion,” he said.

“By sharing information and increasing the awareness of these differences while nurturing togetherness, we can achieve workplace diversity and inclusion, where employees feel equally involved and supported in all areas,” Castro continued.

The cement company also stated that it has undertaken other measures geared towards achieving workplace diversity and inclusion. These include the introduction of paternity leave, changes made to recruitment to ensure an unbiased process, and incorporated training focused on breaking unconscious biases and openness to differences.

“A raft of other measures is slated to come into effect shortly,” the release said.