Approaching paid parental leave in economic uncertainty: Q&A with Elizabeth DeGroot

With economic uncertainty looming, employers are trying their best to prepare for a recession, this includes cutting costs where they can.  A lot of times, the first things cut form the budget are benefits, especially benefits seen as “unnecessary”. However, listening to your employees’ needs and working with them through this process could be the right approach.

So says Elizabeth DeGroot, Director of People and Finance at Eden, a workplace management platform that helps companies and offices organized.

Why are companies choosing parental leave as the policy to pull back on during this economic adjustment period?

Companies need to find ways to cut costs during times of economic impact. While benefits aren’t an area where any company wants to cut, it may be necessary if the company needs to come up with additional cost savings.

What goes into planning parental leave policies?

For our company, this process includes researching to understand legal requirements, industry standards, and what similar companies are offering. It also includes discussions with our employees to understand their needs and priorities. Beyond deciding the number of weeks of paid leave and the process logistics, it’s important to consider how the employee transitions out and returns post leave to ensure the employee is supported as well as making sure the company’s needs are met.

 What are the risks involved in cutting these programs?

The risk of taking away any benefits is attrition and ability to attract new employees. Taking away benefits is tough; once you give a benefit to employees it’s hard to overcome a negative perception, even if the remaining benefits are above average/competitive. I believe being transparent with employees is the best way to handle these situations.

 How will this impact the existing tensions surrounding childcare costs and daycare shortages?

Parents are facing a lot of challenges already and this is further exasperating that. Cutting parental leave benefits not only places more financial stress on parents but also leads to more urgency in finding daycare providers. We always need to find ways to support parents in the workplace and be conscious of how we help them be successful but especially in times where benefits are being rolled back.

Read more: Why paternity leave matters, and 4 ways to make it real

 What advice do you suggest to HR managers as these cuts impact working parents?

Closely look at what else you can offer to these employees — where else can you do better to support them? While it doesn’t replace the financial impact to them, in the case of reducing paid leave, you can still be a highly supportive employer and this goes a long way for sentiment. For example, we’ve heard from our employees who are parents, that flexibility is really important to them — can you offer this no cost benefit while still reaching company goals?