It finally happened. Someone walked in on me while pumping. It was the assistant to one of the company founders (I'm in house). I forgot to engage the lock and I am the only nursing mom at the moment. She uses the fridge in the pumping room to store her lunch and salad dressing. It bothers me but I don't feel like I can ask her to use another fridge because I don't want to upset the apple cart. I'm just a month in. Just wanted to get this off my chest.

Is there a reason she uses that fridge? I understand not wanting to ask her but it seems like a reasonable request

Hopefully she was embarrassed enough that it will be a self correcting problem. Sorry you had to experience that!

I feel like all of my coworkers were so scared about the possibility of walking in on me when I was pumping that even if I had the door partly closed or ajar (for example for a phone call) they would vigorously knock JUST IN CASE I was pumping, or would just come back later

It’s very odd that she uses the fridge in the pumping room. That fridge is put there for a reason and that is the keep the pumped milk safe and fresh for your baby. Do you even want someone’s lunch that you don’t know where it has been. It could contain germs, spilled oil etc. You need to have antibacterial wipes on the top of the fridge or counter and put a sign on the fridge “for pumped milk only”. Start with passive aggressive and take out the passive as appropriate. Take this to HR. If you are the only one using it for milk ask HR if you can put a lock on it. And put a Do not disturb sign before locking your door. If you time that well she’ll need her lunch when you are in there and tell her you are busy and this fridge is for milk only.

She’s being gross but I get why you don’t want to rock the boat. Sorry :/ this sucks

She knew what the room is for and that you are nursing - she should be the one who is embarrassed. I wouldn’t worry about it. My paralegal has walked in on me in the bathroom before 😂

Does your actual office lock? If so, can you put film on your windows? To worry less about cross-contamination try using the freezer. It is significantly less used at the office.

I know it isn't within the norm, but I used to work in an open space and I actually just would pump at my desk covered (see picture in comments). For me it was more important that I got to pump than anything else and work really made going to a different room a pain in the butt and a stress. It also took away worries about being walked in on or others accessing the space.

I'm sorry it's not going well. Try and find an option that you are comfortable with. I hate that being a pumping mom is like walking a tight rope.

That is super weird. I would never use pump room fridge for my lunch. I would second paralegal 2’s advice and go to HR to ask if the company can put a sign on the fridge that says breast milk use only or something like that not naming the assistant but just say you have concern of cross contamination and people using it to store all kinds of stuff then it’s not about you and her but anyone who might need to pump in the future and anyone who might use it to store food.

This happened to me 25 years ago. I worked in a cubicle so management allowed me to go into an empty office which happened to be in a different department from where I worked. There were no locks on the office doors so I taped a do not disturb sign on the door whenever I pumped and took it down when I was finished. Once a young man ignored the sign, thinking it had been left up by mistake and walked in on me. My modesty tended to go way down whenever I had a nursing baby (I've had 4), so I think it embarrassed him more than it embarrassed me. He left immediately but apologized very profusely afterward.

Or ask for a second fridge for just pumped milk. Would be another incentive to limit the use of the fridge and room to just pumping mothers.

Do you not have an office with a door that closes and a fridge under your desk? I had both in my office and just sat at my computer and pumped for like an hour twice a day. I barely noticed.

If that situation is available, just ask for that.