LDS Church now offers paid family leave, changes employee pants policy

1173

The LDS Church announced Wednesday it is now providing paid paternal leave for all employees, and female employees can now wear pants to work.

Full-time female employees with benefits were previously eligible for 12 weeks of unpaid maternity leave; now, they are eligible for six weeks of paid maternity leave.

All men and women who work for the LDS Church full time with benefits are eligible for one week of paid paternal leave per year as well. Women may take this extra week in addition to their maternity leave, as reported by the Deseret News.

Male employees may also now remove their jackets at work in hot weather and wear light-colored shirts.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints also announced it will open a wellness center for employees in October on the seventh floor of the Church Office Building in Salt Lake City.

BYU also announced Wednesday this policy applies to BYU full-time, benefited staff and administrative employees. The policy is retroactive to April 18, 2017. The policy does not apply to BYU faculty.

Carri Jenkins, assistant to the president for University Communications, said full time staff is anyone works 40 hours or more in an administrative or staff position and receives benefits.

BYU employees who wish to take more time off may use sick or vacation leave, and unpaid Family and Medical Leave Act time “may also be available,” according to a university announcement.

The announcement states the parental leave is only available for births or adoptions, not for guardianship, fostering, grandchildren or custody.

“BYU’s Human Resource department is working out the details of this process (parental leave), but in the meantime a contact name has been provided to all staff and administrative employees,” Jenkins said in an email.

BYU-Idaho released a similar statement about parental and maternity leave.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email