At Johnson & Johnson, we are firmly committed to living Our Credo – by respecting the dignity of our employees, fostering a workplace culture of health and providing equal opportunity for everyone.
Our avid support for the 21st Century working family – no matter what shape that family takes – is critical to our workplace culture of health. Last year, we announced a significant upgrade to our parental leave policy in the United States. Moms who give birth can take up to 17 weeks of paid leave during the first year of birth. All new parents – maternal, paternal, adoptive or surrogacy-assisted – can take eight weeks of paid leave during the first year of the family’s new addition. When it comes to supporting our employees, our work is never done.
That’s why today, I’m thrilled to share that we are enhancing the benefits we offer for adoption and fertility, and are introducing brand-new benefits for surrogacy and nursing mothers. We recognize that family planning is an expensive, sometimes stressful proposition, and these policies cement our effort to assist more J&J employees as they endeavor to build a family.
For fertility, benefits coverage in the U.S. is now extended to same-sex couples, and the financial benefit offered has expanded from $25,000 to $35,000. For adoption, reimbursement benefits in the U.S. leap from $5,000 to $20,000 for each child under the age of 18. For surrogacy, we are now offering benefits in the U.S. of up to $20,000 per child for all spouses – both heterosexual and same-sex. For nursing mothers worldwide, we are launching a temperature-controlled delivery service that lets mothers simply and safely ship breast milk back home while traveling for business purposes.
I am immensely proud to work at a company that puts its employees first. These changes represent one more way Johnson & Johnson is living the Credo and doing its part to help our employees better fulfill their responsibilities at work and at home. Let’s celebrate this commitment to families, to work-life balance, and to putting first the needs and well-being of the people we serve.