Should you offer maternity leave?

When evaluating all the different aspects of building a business or changing policies within the business one has to consider whether or not to include maternity leave as a benefit. Now due to the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 and the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 the question really isn't whether you offer maternity leave, it is whether you offer paid or unpaid maternity leave.

The Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 is an amendment to the Title VII Civil Liberties Act of 1964. This amendment was put in place to help prevent against discrimination of pregnancy, childbirth, or other related medical conditions. It falls under sexual discrimination. It is applicable to businesses with 15 employees or more and includes state and federal jobs as well. The Act states that a company cannot refuse to hire a woman based upon the physical condition of pregnancy, or pregnancy related conditions. If that employee needs modifications to their job due to limitations of the pregnancy or conditions that are hazardous to the employee during pregnancy, modifications should be made in the same manner that they would be made for other employees that may be physically disabled. Employers must hold jobs open for employees for pregnancy-related absences for the same length of time they would for other employees that are sick or on disability leave. They must be permitted to work as long as they wish up to the pregnancy and return to work without predetermined time limits imposed. Health insurance provided by companies must include pregnancy related expenses with the same types of cost structures as other medical conditions. Benefits provided must be available to any pregnant woman, and cannot be determined upon marital status. Bottom line, pregnant employees need to be treated the same as other employees with physical limitations or disabilities.

The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 was signed into law by President Bill Clinton.his is one of the United States labor laws that allows employees (both male and female) to take unpaid leave due to any serious health condition or to care for a sick family member, or for the birth, adoption, or foster care of any new family member into the home. The Act provides up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave - job protected. This means that employer must be reinstated to their previous position, or one that is equal in pay, responsibilities and benefits. This law also provides protection against retaliation for taking such leave, such as loss of benefits or job termination. This law is mandated for businesses with 50 or more employees that live within a 75 mile radius. The employee must have worked for the company for at least 12 months and a total of 1250 hours during that 12 month time period. It also applies to state and federal jobs.

With all this in mind now, the option really isn't whether you will offer leave; it is simply a choice of if you offer paid leave. Let's look at the benefits of providing a paid maternity leave option.Paid maternity leave is a signal to your employees of your commitment to them which translates into an increased job satisfaction, increased productivity, and a greater employee loyalty. The number of employees returning back to work after a paid maternity leave is greater than those without. It helps in the reduction of paying for new recruitment and training costs. Paid maternity leave is a cost effective means of retaining a skilled and valuable staff. Overall, it can help improve your organizations overall effectiveness and efficiency improves through the benefits of long term service, institutional memory, long term memory, networking contacts, and industry knowledge.