Working at a global technology company like Microsoft is by no means easy. Every day, we ask our people to bring their best to their work, and to support our mission, strategy and culture with constant enthusiasm and passion. While modern day demands from work and family can be incredibly challenging to manage, we as a leading employer in Singapore want to do our part to foster an inclusive environment for our people to contribute the best way they can at work and at home.
Our people are our greatest assets. Microsoft is creating an environment that allows our employees to be fully present at work, yet fully present at home at times when family needs them most.
To better meet these needs, we have enhanced our family leave benefits to ensure that our people can effectively have time away from work to care for the people who matter most in their lives. These enhancements include:
- Enhanced leave for parents: We have enhanced our parental leave benefits to ensure that both mothers and fathers have time to bond with their new child. Maternity leave for birth mothers will be increased to 20 weeks paid at 100 percent (up from 16 weeks previously), and paternity/parental leave will be increased to six weeks (up from two weeks previously) paid at 100 percent for all new parents other than birth mothers. In addition, adoption leave will be increased to 12 weeks for adopting mothers, and six weeks for adopting fathers (up from 12 weeks for adopting mothers only)
- New family caregiver leave: To cater to the needs of family members with serious health conditions, we have introduced a new family caregiver leave to enable employees to focus on their family at times when they are needed most. Employees can take time away via the family caregiver leave – four weeks of paid leave paid at 100 percent – to take care of an immediate family member with a serious health condition.
We believe that our people deserve our best. With family leave enhancements to help them focus on the things that matter, this fosters an inclusive environment that empowers them to bring their best to the table wherever they are.
As a parent of two children myself, I believe these family enhancements have come at the right time. With a great organisation behind us empowering both our work and personal goals, this will help to create a more conducive environment for our people to put their best foot forward at times that truly matter.