Why Paid Parental Leave Matters

The needs of your employees are always changing. No two people are the same. Everybody has different goals in life so, naturally, you’ll run into different requests depending on the employee. 

It’s important to ensure your workplace has paid time off policies that reflect the challenges of your workforce. Ten, fifteen years ago, the idea of “work-life balance” was pretty unheard of. Now, it’s a necessity, and it’s important for your business to work this changing of the times.

One important step in this process is developing a company policy on parental leave. It needs to be positive, needs to consider the needs of your employee, and it should be paid. Parental leave has made its way into the mainstream and is, largely, just the way we do things now. A Mercer study showed how more than two-fifths of surveyees reported offering paid parental leave to not only the birthing parent, but the non-birthing parent as well.

That’s a lot of pressure to adjust your parental leave policy. But there’s more to it than it just being popular. Join us, today, for four great reasons to review your Ormond Beach business’ parental leave policy.

Attracting Talent

It’s a sign of a solid operation when word gets out that it’s adapting progressive policies with its employees. It’s something people talk about. And, assuming your goal is attracting talented individuals to your business, why wouldn’t you want the news to spread?

When you don’t want someone filling a desk or standing by, it pays to find quality candidates during recruiting. Paid free parental leave is a strong bargaining chip, especially for newly-weds, but really for any number of different people. Remember: if you can provide when it matters most, people will internalize that and want to work for you.

Whether your business is fielding make or female candidates, parental leave is one of those benefits that signs the deal so you can compete with other businesses in your industry. Comprehensive support packages for employees are becoming the new norm, and not offering them will leave you in the dust. 

Holding Onto Talent

By this stage, it’s no secret that business turnover can be costly. Losing an employee, then scouring the job boards for a new one, interviewing them, negotiating their salary, and onboarding them all cost money. Not only that, but they dig into your operational time and resources, which could be spent generating income in other parts of your business.

Transitioning from training to the workplace itself takes effort, and so does transitioning from being a working person to being a parent. The fact that your business has factored that in with a comprehensive parental leave policy will show your employees that you consider their needs as well as your own. Much like any other relationship, this kind of thoughtfulness will go a long way toward retaining these employees.

Digital media giants, BuzzFeed, have reported increased employee retention by simply offering 18-week paid leaves to primary caregivers and 6 weeks for secondary.  Parents also have access to counseling resources during their transition. With this simple change, the company saw an increase to 95% in their retention rates. For reference, the national average at the time was about 57%. 

Maintaining Workplace Equality

In the modern workplace, it’s more important than ever to make sure you’re considering the equality and fairness of your operation. We’ve come a long way as a society and minority representatives from every corner of the world are speaking up to have their say.

Which brings us to a simple question: why is it that businesses have, traditionally, offered mothers paid maternity leave but not given the same option to fathers? Until recently, this was just the norm, but it does imply that mothers have to be primary caregivers and fathers will always be known as “just” the breadwinner.

If you can offer a paid maternity option that even just covers paid maternity leave to both parents (like Buzzfeed did), you break down this idea of inequality in your workforce. It doesn’t even necessarily need to be exactly the same coverage, as we’ve seen above – so long as it’s a meaningful amount, you’re already doing your part.

Of course, the goal is equality in the workplace, and that will eventually come down to offering the same duration of paid leave to both mothers and fathers. If you can do this, you break down the idea of mothers and fathers being “different” and give your employees what they want: more time to spend with their families. This isn’t just a kind thing to do, either – it’s a measured approach that shows your employees you’ve really considered your operation and are working to make it better.

Creating A Positive Culture

When we factor in all of the points above, we start to see an image emerge. Namely, a business with a positive working culture. The kind of place that people want to work. Where recruitment is strong and the candidates who start have a lot to offer the work being done. Where older employees stick around because they’ve always been treated properly. And where the gender gap continues to be closed with policies that factor in everyone, man, woman or undefined. 

The benefits of a positive business culture can’t be overstated. Team projects are carried out more efficiently, with everyone “on the same page”. Retention and new hiring are both complete breezes. And the level and consistency of the work is a near-guarantee because, hey, you know all of the people doing the work. 

And parental leave plays its own part in the creation of this kind of culture. A good policy encourages parents to spend time with their families, leaving them feeling more fulfilled. Employees, in turn, bring this healthy outlook into the workplace, the knock-on effect being a stronger workforce, overall.

Parental Leave: Are You Doing Everything You Can?

If it’s been a while since you reviewed your parental leave policies, it may be time to update them. Remember that you’re dealing with employees whose lives are evolving around them every day. They’re going to need your help, and the more considerate you are, the more incentive they’ll have to be loyal. 

Looking for more insights into your payroll process? Need someone to take the whole process off your hands? At Vision HR, we offer payroll administration to help you navigate the tricky waters of fast-changing tax laws, company-specific needs, and shifting administrative requirements. Get in touch with us today to find out more about how we can help you manage your Ormond Beach business processes.