Can (or Should) Your Business Try to Match Yahoo’s New Maternity Leave Policy?

After receiving criticism for taking too little time off from work following the birth of her daughter, Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer recently announced a very employee-friendly maternity leave policy. New mothers will receive up to 16 weeks of paid leave with benefits.  New dads and adoptive parents are entitled to eight weeks paid leave.

While the policy is certain to win points with Yahoo employees, many small New York and New Jersey businesses simply can’t compete due to smaller staff size and budget restraints. So what can you do to keep employees happy and comply with local and federal employee leave laws?

First, it is important to understand your obligations under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), which applies in most instances to employers with 50 or more employees:

• Eligible employees are entitled to take up to 12 workweeks of job-protected unpaid leave following the birth of a son or daughter to care for the newborn child.
• Parents of both sexes have the same right to take FMLA leave.
• FMLA leave also applies to the placement of a child for adoption or foster care, and to care for the newly placed child.
• The FMLA’s definition of parent includes a person with day-to-day responsibilities to care for and financially support a child. Therefore, an employee who is co-parenting a child with a same-sex partner may be entitled to FMLA leave.

Second, the FMLA is simply a starting point. Your company is free to offer additional leave and/or to provide pay and benefits during the leave period or flex time options afterwards to provide a long-term child care solution (something Ms. Mayer might frown upon having recently panned Yahoo’s work from home policy). While exceeding the legal requirements may be more costly, family-friendly maternity leave policies can help attract and retain key employees. The bottom line is that maternity leave policies are not “one size fits all.”  What works for one company may not work for yours.

If you have any questions about maternity leave or would like to discuss your company’s policies, please contact me, Donald Pepe, or the Scarinci Hollenbeck attorney with whom you work.