A WORKING mum has said she felt like a “criminal” after security guards at a Joondalup shopping centre escorted her from a parents’ room where she had gone to pump milk.
A statement from Lakeside Joondalup Shopping City said the parenting rooms are for the use of all parents including mothers expressing milk.
The shopping centre issued an apology to the mother “for any hurt caused”.
Get in front of tomorrow's news for FREE
Journalism for the curious Australian across politics, business, culture and opinion.
READ NOWNatalie Cramp claimed security wouldn’t leave the parenting room until she said she was leaving.
“I felt like a criminal being shadowed the whole time I was in the mother’s room,” Ms Cramp wrote on Facebook.
“When I told (the) security guard I was going to report this she said I will escort you there, to try (to) intimidate me from complaining.
“The female security guard broke the law by opening the curtain exposing me after I had already shown them my breast pump out of the curtain.
“Then refused to leave (me) even when I asked why I was still being followed.”
The Lakeside statement confirmed that security attended the parent room to perform a welfare check.
This was due to another customer raising concerns about an unattended woman entering the room.
“Given customer safety is our top priority our security team respond to every call or complaint,” the statement said.
“At no time did security ask the mother to leave the room, nor was she escorted out.
“We apologised to the mother immediately and reassured her that she is welcome to use the parenting room at any time.”