Why parental leave matters

A TALENT RETENTION TOOL: On the latest episode of Employee Benefit News' award-winning podcast, Perk Up!, the chief people officer at Hewlett Packard Enterprises explores how the company's parental leave policy — six months is its standard — is beneficial to both workers and the business.

"[R]eally it's about the value we place on our team members and their emotional and physical wellbeing and the support for them as parents," says Kristin Major, the vice president and chief people officer at Hewlett Packard Enterprises. "And it's about retaining and attracting top talent. Frankly, these kinds of policies are very good for business in the sense that our team members appreciate them and it does incent people, obviously, to join us and to stay once they have come on board."

Read more about HPE's parental leave policies: Perk Up! Giving birth, then back to work: Building better parental leave policies

CONSIDER THIS BENEFIT: Between years of paperwork and legal fees, parents who choose to adopt typically have an expensive and taxing journey ahead of them. But for parents struggling to get pregnant or same-sex couples, adoption may be the only viable path toward growing their family. However, just 25% of companies offer adoption benefits, according to Maven Clinic, while SHRM estimates that only 35% offer paid parental leave for workers who just adopted a child.

HSA Bank, which administers different types of employer-provided accounts, hopes its newest savings plan can change that. The company's adoption assistance plan is an employer-provided benefit that allows employees to put aside pre-tax dollars from their paycheck in a savings account for expenses related to child adoption.

"I am not only the son of an adopted child, but I'm also a parent of an adopted child — I know from personal experience that adoption is expensive," says Kevin Robertson, chief revenue officer at HSA Bank. "I know this plan could be a powerful tool for a person going through adoption."

Read more about HSA Bank's adoption benefit: Why employers should offer an adoption savings plan

ATTENTION JOB SEEKERS: For the most part, the state of the labor market is a guessing game for both organizations and their workforces. But once broken down, it could reveal just how they can prepare themselves for the upcoming months. 

As of June, the labor market showed significant signs of slowing down, according to Indeed's most recent job report. The data revealed that the unemployment rate rose to 4.1% — the highest it's been since November 2021 — as well as slowing job gains and moderate wage growth. But what does that mean for employees and employers? 

"This report shows the temperature of the labor market is still pleasant, but if current trends continue, the weather could get uncomfortably cold," says Nick Bunker's, economic research director for North America at Indeed's Hiring Lab. "This means that for now, the labor market remains robust — but the future is uncertain." 

Read more analysis about the unemployment rate: Breaking down the labor market: What it means for employees and employers