Here’s a detailed overview of what your company needs to consider under Canadian employment and human rights laws (I have gone for Federal compliance as you did not specify your jurisdiction) when accommodating an employee returning from maternity leave who is requesting to work from home due to child care needs:

1. Duty to Accommodate under Human Rights Law
Employers have a duty to accommodate employees based on protected grounds—including family status—to the point of undue hardship. This includes accommodating parental obligations such as child care.

Key Considerations:
The employee’s request to work from home to care for her infant is a family status accommodation request.

The employee has made reasonable efforts to find child care (e.g., registering with daycares), which shows she’s not avoiding returning to the office.

You must engage in an individualized, good-faith assessment of whether and how the accommodation can be provided.

2. Assessing the Work-from-Home Request
The company should assess:

Whether the employee’s job duties can be effectively performed remotely.

Whether working from home will cause undue hardship to the organization—this could include significant operational challenges, costs, or safety risks.

If there’s no undue hardship, then accommodation should be granted—possibly with clear timelines and reassessment periods (e.g., after 4 months).

Tip: Document all steps of the interactive accommodation process.

3. Privacy for Breastfeeding / Pumping Milk
Employers are legally required to support breastfeeding in the workplace. This includes:

Providing a private, clean space (not a washroom) for pumping.

Ensuring access to a refrigerator for milk storage.

Providing reasonable breaks for pumping, without penalty.

Your small boardroom sounds like a viable option if it can be made private and scheduled for regular access.

4. What The Company Cannot Do
You cannot terminate or penalize the employee for requesting accommodation due to child care or breastfeeding needs.

You cannot refuse the accommodation request without a legitimate undue hardship analysis.

You cannot force the employee to return if she has not been reasonably accommodated under family status or medical needs.

5. Suggested Steps for the Company
Engage in a dialogue with the employee about her needs and your operational capacity.

Assess remote work feasibility, and if possible, grant the work-from-home arrangement for a defined period (e.g., 4 months), with periodic check-ins.

Set clear expectations for remote performance and communication.

Designate and prepare a private space for breastfeeding/pumping upon her return to the office.

Document all discussions and steps taken in the accommodation process.

6. Additional Supports
Consider an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) if available, to support work-life transitions.

If feasible, offer flex hours or staggered return-to-work schedules to help with the transition.

Check out these resources from HRInsider: Return To Work Policy, Work From Home Policy, Maternity Leave Policy, and our recent Ask The Expert submission about Returning Back To Work After Maternity Leave.

I hope this helps!
-HRInsider Staff

In most jurisdictions, an employer’s ability to ask for personal information — such as proof of a child’s daycare waitlist — is strictly limited by privacy laws and human rights legislation. Information requests from employers must be:

-Reasonable,

-Necessary for a legitimate business purpose, and

-Proportional to the need being addressed.

In Canada (especially British Columbia, where privacy law is strict): The Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA) allows employees the right to deny providing such information.

When It Might Be Allowed
A company might be able to ask for some proof only if:

-It is tied to an official workplace accommodation request (e.g., a flexible work schedule).

-There is a direct and demonstrable impact on work obligations (e.g., requesting extended leave or other specific benefits related to childcare).

-The information requested is minimally invasive — for instance, a simple confirmation letter from a daycare provider without revealing unnecessary details.

However, even in these cases, the employer would typically need to justify:

-Why they need that specific proof,

-Why less intrusive proof (such as an employee’s own written statement) wouldn’t be sufficient.

Important: The employer usually cannot demand the names or details of multiple daycares unless absolutely necessary. Generally, verifying that the employee is seeking daycare arrangements would be sufficient.

Risks for the Employer
If an employer requests more information than necessary, they could be:

-In violation of privacy laws (which could lead to penalties or complaints to a Privacy Commissioner).

-Subject to a human rights complaint if the request appears discriminatory or overly invasive.

-Potentially liable for constructive dismissal claims if the employee resigns due to privacy breaches.

A more appropriate request would be:

“Could you please provide confirmation that you are actively seeking childcare placement, such as a generic letter or email from a daycare provider?”

-HRInsider Staff