David Fitz-Gerald, the head of human resources for GSK Australia and New Zealand, says the company's new parental level policy reflects its understanding that the pathway to parenthood is not a straight line.
Nothing is more important than family - and so, it follows that nothing is more important for an employee than being supported to be an active member of their own family.
For employees starting a family or expecting a new member this is a precious and joyous time but also presents its own challenges - not least of which can be how to balance the needs of a family with the demands of their career and workplace.
The journey toward parenthood - fertility, pregnancy and/or adoption - is also an intensely personal one and supporting employees along the way requires care and an empathetic and inclusive approach.
This is why GSK’s parental leave policy is so important and why we have been working on the next evolution of our policy since our last major update in 2018.
In shaping our policy, we have taken guidance from the Workplace Gender Equity Agency (WGEA) framework and benchmarked key elements against our market peers.
We have also taken input from the lived experience of some of our working parents who, through their own journeys, have had the support (or not) of our previous policy. I hope they are as proud of their contribution to this new policy as I am.
An effective parental leave policy is not only about employee benefits, which are very important of course, but it is equally about how the policy makes you feel, what support is provided in the most delicate moments and that it’s inclusive. After all, the pathway to parenthood is not a straight line.
With this in mind, in Australia and New Zealand, we have updated our parental leave policy to ensure our benefits are inclusive and accessible to all of our employees.
Anyone taking parental leave from 1 January 2022 will be able to enjoy the following changes:
- Increased paid leave for Primary Caregivers - from 12 weeks to 16 weeks, plus a 4-week return to work payment;
- Increased paid leave for Secondary Caregivers – from 4 weeks to 8 weeks;
- For employees in field-based roles who have a car (either tool of trade or car allowance), this will be maintained during the paid and unpaid parental leave periods for up to maximum of 12 months;
- Implementation of 10 days of Family Leave which can be used where needed as employees progress through the fertility, pregnancy and/or adoption journeys;
- Removing evidence requirements for leave eligibility except when required for work health and safety, to promote a culture of trust; and,
- GSK will also continue to pay Australian Superannuation & New Zealand KiwiSaver contributions during the paid and unpaid leave periods.
Our simplified policy also takes a gender-neutral approach that encourages all parents to take primary caregiver leave. According to the WGEA 2019-2020 Gender Equity Report, parental leave has the potential to break down gender stereotypes around paid and unpaid work if taken by men and women.
One of my colleagues Simon Barnfather (left), who is GSK Australia’s lead health economist for reimbursement and pricing, is just one of many examples of how our new policies can have a positive impact on family life and balance. He recently took parental leave to spend some extended time with his daughter Zara and support his partner in transitioning back into her career, without the pressure of full-time work.
We also believe that our Parental Leave Policy will contribute towards closing the gender pay gap by providing women with greater support and opportunities for career development especially in addressing the large gap in superannuation balances.
Promoting equality in the workplace is a priority for GSK Australia and New Zealand, and these enhancements to our Parental Leave Policy provide an inclusive and equitable framework to achieve this.
Postscript
In writing the final version of this reflection piece in the evening, my 10-year-old son got out of bed and asked for a hug. He asked me what I was doing. I said I was writing about our policy that supports people at work when they have children and I read him out aloud what you have just read. This was not only a great chance to proofread (nothing beats reading out loud to make sure you’re making sense) but to show him that opinion articles aren’t just something you do in Grade 5 at school. He listened carefully and thought for a moment when I finished. He said, “You should include one more paragraph about what it was like for you when you and Mum had kids and how you were supported. Like on Masterchef, you don’t understand why the dish is so important until the chef tells the judges their story – and then it does.”
And so there it is. The most important thing. My family. In building this policy my family, those of my colleagues whose experiences I have shared and those still to come are the reason this is so important.
