Apple Employee Benefits For New Parents Upgraded To Flexible Hours, Higher Financial Assistance

Studies have shown returning to work for new moms is harder than they expect and occurs before they're really ready. Apple Inc. consulted with its female employees about this and has just introduced a policy that will give new parents a four-week grace period after returning from leave.

This new gradual return-to-work policy will see new parents continue to be paid like full-time employees but will have the flexibility to work part-time. New parents can also set their own hours with their manager’s oversight.

This policy applies to all new parents, and includes those that adopt or take care of foster children. Paid leave is capped at six weeks for non-birth parents, however.

These benefits also cover Apple’s retail workers that account for nearly half of the company’s employees. This four-week grace period comes on top of 16 weeks of paid leave to birth parents, which is about the same as that in other tech firms.

Deirdre O’Brien, Apple's senior vice president of Retail + People and a member of Apple's executive leadership team, said she felt there was more the company could do to help ease their transition back to the workplace.

“What we find a lot of times is people are really excited to get back to work,” according to O’Brien. “At the same time, (they) feel like they need to make sure things are really stable and successful at home. And that weighs heavy on people’s minds, I think.”

Apple has also expanded leave for adoptive parents by four weeks. It's also almost tripled its financial assistance for families that choose to adopt. Apple provides $14,000 in assistance for employees that choose to adopt children. Adoptive parents will be allowed an additional four weeks of paid time-off through Paid Family Care, which a benefit the company provides for family illness.

“There’s more administration and complexity around adding to your family via adoption,” said O’Brien.

Apple also revealed it’s building on its mental wellness benefits. It will double the number of free counseling sessions available to employees every year and provide telemedicine options to employees seeking more flexibility.