Dive Brief:
- Target's workforce — including part-time, hourly employees — will soon have expanded access to paid family leave and backup care, according to a Monday announcement.
- Target will shift from offering two weeks' paid parental leave to a broader policy that gives employees up to four weeks' paid time off annually to care for a newborn or sick family member, according to CNN Business. Birth mothers receive an additional six to eight weeks of paid leave, the outlet reported.
- The retailer also said it will extend its backup care benefit to hourly employees with childcare or eldercare responsibilities. "We've taken a strong position on minimum starting wages, but that's just one facet of our team member experience," said Melissa Kremer, Target's CHRO, in the statement. "Our team finds so much support here to grow their skills and careers, make a difference in their communities, and take care of themselves and their families — including benefits that we're enhancing to be more relevant across a breadth of life stages.
Dive Insight:
Target is among the forward-looking employers that have extended workplace compensation and benefits as part of their recruiting and hiring strategies. In fact, the retailer boosted its minimum wage to $13 an hour earlier this year.
Paid family leave was a benefit favorite among workers in a 2018 Unum poll — underscoring its value as an attraction and retention driver for talent. Target and other retailers depend on hourly and part-time workers who may hold multiple jobs and might find it difficult to take unpaid time for caregiving responsibilities. Understanding this, retailers like Lululemon and H&M have also come around to the idea that paid leave might bolster retention among this group.
Leave and backup care can insulate workers from fatigue and stress, as well. According to a 2018 Business Performance Innovation Network study, 60% of working parents experienced burnout. The main cause was constant exhaustion and difficulty handling everyday tasks, which 40% of respondents said negatively affected their quality of life. Anxiety can also lead to lower productivity on the job, which can cost employers billions of dollars annually.
