Parental Leave Policy
There is nothing more exciting and potentially stressful than welcoming a new child into your home.
At Vermont Craft Mead, we do our best to provide a family-friendly environment, but we don't need our employees worrying about coming into work - no matter how child friendly - during the first crucial weeks with their new little one.
We think the idea of differentiating between "primary" and "secondary" caregiver is not only nonsense, it's actually harmful. The idea that one person is "primarily" in charge of the child often perpetuates gender and income disparity, so our policies apply to people of all genders welcoming a child into their home whether through birth or adoption.
Our current policies are as follows:
At Vermont Craft Mead, we do our best to provide a family-friendly environment, but we don't need our employees worrying about coming into work - no matter how child friendly - during the first crucial weeks with their new little one.
We think the idea of differentiating between "primary" and "secondary" caregiver is not only nonsense, it's actually harmful. The idea that one person is "primarily" in charge of the child often perpetuates gender and income disparity, so our policies apply to people of all genders welcoming a child into their home whether through birth or adoption.
Our current policies are as follows:
- Paid parental leave for all genders for both birth and adoption, with full wage replacement for 6 weeks. (Available after 6 months with the company.)
- Extended parental leave for all genders for both birth and adoption. Employees may take up to 9 months off unpaid and return to their position at the same pay-rate and hours. Employees may also opt to take advantage of our flexible working arrangement to modify their position as per the previous bullet point.
Public Paid Family Leave Advocacy
We are also huge supporters of a publicly administered paid parental leave program, and advocate strongly for strengthening Vermont H. 107. We are proud that we've made progress towards a state-wide parental leave program, but we feel that we have a long way to go.
