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Breast Milk Shipping
As with many of the benefits discussed in this article, it no longer suffices for companies to offer the basic benefits package or merely what the law mandates. In a continuous search for ways employers can help new parents return to work, a trending benefit for new moms finds companies paying the tab to ship breast milk home when these women travel for business.
While somewhat of a niche benefit, people appreciate the small things that reinforce the family-friendly culture of an organization. According to the EBN article, Shipping breast milk emerges as an employee benefit, with very high feedback even from employees who may never take advantage of the program.
In the plight to find a balance between their careers and families, breastfeeding parents long to nourish both. It is from this desire that companies like Milk Stork were born. Milk Stork’s CEO and founder Kate Torgerson developed the concept after she experienced the challenges of work travel while expressing and bringing home breast milk when she was the new mother of twins.
Milk Stork uses pharmaceutical-grade, vacuum-insulated coolers that provide a minimum of 72 hours of refrigeration for refrigerated breast milk and 96 hours for frozen. These are sent to the mother’s hotel room, along with breast milk storage bags, seals, and instructions. With Milk Stork, employers can make a difference by providing employees access to a practical solution that solves the logistical challenges of returning to work with a newborn.
Flexible Work Arrangements
When an employee becomes a parent, their priorities shift dramatically. Returning to work can bring a flood of emotions and take a physical and mental toll on parents. Allowing flexible working hours and the option for remote work to accommodate parenting needs can be a game changer for companies.
The truth is, the Covid-19 pandemic forever changed the way we work and what companies expect of employees. Offering parents flexibility–whether it be by way of phased return-to-work programs, flexible hours, or work-from-home options–is paramount to a successful transition back to the workforce.
There are a multitude of flexible work arrangements employed across the corporate landscape. For employers, the key is finding which of the flexible work arrangements will provide sufficient flexibility to keep workers happy without suffering a negative impact on productivity or work quality. Companies that take the time to work collaboratively with their employees to find the right balance will see a positive return on their investment.
School-Age Children
Scheduling
Our mental development and overall happiness are shaped by family relationships. Companies that seek to aid employees in strengthening and maintaining those relationships come out on top. By offering flexible scheduling to accommodate such things as pediatrician appointments, school events, parent-teacher conferences, and athletic events, organizations are putting their money where their mouths are—and reaping the rewards.
Academic Planning
Every stage of parenting offers its own cornucopia of challenges, and juggling the responsibilities of work and family can be a job in and of itself. We’ve all heard the old adage, “There are only so many hours in a day,” and more recently, “It takes a village.” Put these two pearls of wisdom together, and you have the motto for most parents. Employers can relieve some of the stress that accompanies parenting by providing such perks as academic advising for employee’s children, hosting college planning seminars, and offering scholarship programs.
Extracurricular Support
Raising a child is expensive! Consumer estimates put the price of parenting even a single child at $300,000+. A decent chunk of that expense is spent on extracurricular activities like sports, clubs, and summer camps. Companies that provide subsidies or discounts for such extracurricular activities can find themselves on the winning end of the corporate battle to attract and retain quality employees.
Ongoing Family Support
Elder Care Support
The full family journey includes aging and the care and support of generations before us. Every single person will need and/or provide care to someone in their lifetime, probably more than once. LongTermCare.Gov reports that:
- Someone turning age 65 today has almost a 70% chance of needing some type of long-term care services and support in their remaining years
- Women need care longer (3.7 years) than men (2.2 years)
- One-third of today's 65-year-olds may never need long-term care support, but 20% will need it for longer than 5 years
While it is true that the majority of today’s workforce are Gen Z and millennials, companies are increasingly recognizing the value of their Gen X and baby boomer talent and seeking ways of retaining them beyond traditional retirement ages—or luring them back to the workforce in innovative ways.
Companies can offer support for elder care, including informational resources and caregiving leave, a valuable benefit for employees of all ages. According to career expert, ZIPPIA, the national average annual employee turnover rate was 47.2% as of 2021. Of that number, the turnover rate in the private sector was 52%, finance and insurance was 26%, professional and business services was 64%, government turnover was 18%, and healthcare and social assistance was 39%.
Family Health and Wellness Programs
If we're lucky, families last a lifetime; our working roles do not. We’ve all seen the memes and gifs reminding us that when we die, our employers will replace us the next day, but our families are the people who will miss us. Companies that want to stay at the forefront of today’s business need to acknowledge this truth and adopt a family–first attitude. To that end, companies that provide family health insurance plans and wellness programs that cover the whole family are more attractive than those that do not.
One particular benefit to consider in the effort to stay ahead of the curve is menopause support. According to a report by People Management: