Parental leave is hard to come by in this country. Workers in the fast food industry tend to go without the employee benefits found in other sectors — Netflix offers 12 months parental leave to most of its employees, for instance. Basically the American worker is at the behest of their corporate employers when it comes to benefits, and low-skill, easily replaceable employees usually get the worst of it. But not at Starbucks.
The company has been listening to the needs of its employees and announced that they plan to expand their parental leave program even further, to all employees who work over 20 hours a week. Starting in October, birth mothers will receive six weeks leave at 100 percent pay — a rise from the 67% the company previously offered. Those employees will also be eligible to take an additional 12 weeks of unpaid leave, without fearing losing their jobs. Employees working in offices and managerial positions will receive 18 weeks paid leave at 100 percent pay — also an increase from 67 percent. Non birth parents will be able to take 12 weeks leave without pay if they work in store, and full pay if they work in the offices.
Starbuck’s president, Kevin Johnson said in their press release that “while we have made substantial investments in our partners, we want to continue to do more. This is one of many steps we are actively taking to evolve our benefits and create a Partner Experience that lives up to our aspirations.” This move makes Starbucks a leader in parental leave amongst the fast food service industry. McDonald’s offers birth mothers 12 weeks at 50 percent pay and nothing for non birth parents. Yum! Brands (Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, Kentucky Fried Chicken) offers no parental leave whatsoever.
(Via New York Times)
