Amazon bars breastfeeding boss from business course over health and safety fears

By OLIVIA DAY, ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR, AUSTRALIA Published: 11:54, 7 July 2026 | Updated: 11:58, 7 July 2026 A CEO was barred from attending an Amazon business course after she was told breastfeeding her baby would present a health and safety risk.  Rachael Bews, who runs the Scotland-based marketing agency Nu Coton, was looking forward to attending the Amazon Innovation Accelerator programme.  Participants tour Amazon's fulfilment centre in Dunfermline, northwest of Edinburgh, before taking part in workshops for the rest of the day.  The fulfilment centre is Amazon's largest in the UK at 93,000 square metres, stretching the length of 14 football pitches and employing over 1,200 staff.  Ms Bews, 33, organised pet-sitting and childcare for her two other children and spent £80 on train tickets so she, her husband and their five-month-old baby could attend. She told event organisers that she planned to directly nurse her baby girl Sophia throughout the day, who would be cared for by her husband. Ms Bews had hoped Amazon would find a space for her husband and Sophia on the sizeable campus while she attended the workshops. But her hopes were dashed when Amazon phoned while she was on the train to the event and said her breastfeeding requirements could not be accommodated.  A CEO was barred from attending an Amazon business course after she was told breastfeeding her baby would present a health and safety risk (pictured, Rachael Bews and her baby) Dunfermline's fulfilment centre is the largest in the UK at 93,000sqm, stretching the length of 14 football pitches and employing over 1,200 permanent staff (pictured) An event organiser told Ms Bews that due to health and safety requirements, babies and young children could not be brought onto the industrial site.   The marking executive said she immediately burst into 'hot, sweaty tears' in a LinkedIn post penned hours after the phone call. Ms Bews said that while she didn't expect to bring her baby into the fulfilment centre, she had hoped her husband and Sophia could be accommodated in a nearby meeting room while she took part in the workshops. While the site offers private lactation rooms for staff to express or store breast milk, Ms Bews planned to nurse Sophia directly throughout the day and hadn't brought sterilised bottles, breast pumps or storage equipment.  The mother-of-three wrote on LinkedIn: 'I completely understand the need for strict health and safety rules in an active industrial environment. 'But the practical outcome is that I can't take part on the first day because there isn't a workable way for me to breastfeed my baby during the programme.' Ms Bews was told via email that Amazon would be 'happy' to cover her travel costs. She was also offered a place on an upcoming programme near Manchester.  They wrote: 'As I explained when we spoke, we appreciate your understanding that, due to health and safety requirements, babies and young children cannot be brought on site. As this is an active industrial working environment, access is restricted to ensure the safety of all visitors and employees.' The centre stretches the length of 14 football pitches and employs about 1,200 staff (pictured) On the day of the event, Ms Bews said she 'couldn't face' travelling to the venue only to find there still wasn't a workable way to participate while breastfeeding.  'As disappointing as that was, today has given me time to think,' she wrote.  'I don't want my daughter's generation to still face barriers to opportunity because they're breastfeeding, caring for others, or trying to balance family life with building a career or a business.' An Amazon spokesperson said: 'We sincerely apologise to Ms Bews that our site access policy was not communicated clearly before she travelled to the event. That should not have happened, and we understand her frustration. 'Amazon does not permit children under the age of six on any of our fulfilment centre sites. This is a long-standing health and safety policy that applies to all visitors and employees. 'We recognise that this policy, combined with the late communication, meant that Ms Bews was unable to participate as planned, and we are sorry for the disruption and frustration this caused.  'We are reviewing our communications process to prevent this from happening again.' Ms Bews has received an outpouring of support on LinkedIn, with hundreds of women juggling motherhood and their careers sharing similar experiences.  Laura Middleton wrote: 'I was once refused entry to a speed awareness course when I said I would need to feed my newborn baby part way through.  '[I] was told they couldn't allow me to either leave for 10 mins to feed her or bring her into the room to do so. Needless to say I didn't accept no. It was outrageous.  'My husband was happy to wait outside the centre with her until she needed feeding. Eventually they gave in as they ran out of excuses. And they allowed me 10 minutes out of the room to feed her. I literally went during the break!' Candice Day wrote: 'I was the first person in history to request a breastfeeding exemption for my GMAT exam (standardized exam required for masters program entry) but they refused.  'The testing center accommodated but the time on my exam was not paused. Rushing to feed (unsuccessfully) and then rushing to finish my exam. I failed. I had to retake about six months later.  'When I attended the two-day orientation for my MBA and on baby #2 I had a newborn to feed. They refused ANY accommodation. I had to pack a breast pump around with me all day and take my breaks and meal break in a car in the parking lot where my spouse brought baby and toddler so I could nurse.  'Then they wonder why women are choosing career stability first before babies.' The Daily Mail has contacted Ms Bews for further comment.