Microsoft Thailand further enhances work-life balance for employees and promotes diversity and inclusion with new family leave benefits for employees.

 |   Thornthawat Thongnab

BANGKOK, Thailand – May 8, 2017 – Today, Microsoft Thailand announced its enhanced parental leave policies and introduced new family caregivers leave benefits to ensure its employees have the time they need to care for the people who matter most in their lives. The revamped benefits are effective starting May 2, 2017 and include 20 weeks of maternity leave (for biological mothers), six weeks of parental leave (for biological and adoptive fathers/adoptive mothers), as well as a new four-weeks family caregiver leave.

Chutima Sribumrungsart, Human Resource Lead, Microsoft, Thailand, said “Microsoft mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more, and succeeding in this is literally impossible without our great employees who bring their best to work every day. At the same time, the company is committed to provide the best thing for our employees by continually assessing, refining, and enhancing the world-class benefits we offer. We know that there are times when family will be their only focus, so we want our employees to have the time they need to be fully present at home and care for the people who matter most in their lives.”

To ensure new parents have enough time to bond with their new-born, or adopted children, Microsoft increased maternity leave from 12 to 20 weeks and paternity leave from 3 days to six weeks – both paid at 100 percent.

Domehatai Bunnag, Channel Executive, and soon-to-be a mother of 2, said “I am very happy that Microsoft has introduced these new family benefits. It makes me feel confident that I’ll stay on track with the management team and the company’s direction. The policy of enhancing work-life balance as well as promotion of diversity and inclusion is tangible. Both, straight and same sex parents will receive these benefits. I’m very impressed with this progressive policy, which welcomes diversity and inclusion.”

“Personally, I feel happy and relieved. From my past experiences of having the first child, after taking 3 months off, I felt that my work efficiency substantially decreased. I did not perform well as I had to go through the biggest life adjustment. I did not have enough sleep as I was busy with mom’s duties. This had negative impact on my career as a sales person, and made me feel stressed both at home and at work. I felt like I couldn’t do anything well. Now as I’m expecting the second child, I know I have five months, which is enough to adjust and fully focus on my baby, and my health. I feel relieved and confident that when the time comes, I will be able to fully perform as a mother, and as a good employee. Moreover, full payment during maternal leave means that I will not have to worry about the income. These new benefits, thus, make Microsoft a truly great place to work.”

Udom Trasborworn, an Account Manager and a new father said “The new benefits are a great support for the employees who need to spend time with their families. My daughter was born just a month ago, and it was quite a challenging month for me and wife. I had to help take care of our baby, and also go to the office, although I could have worked from home. So now I’m not worried about having the second child anymore.

 

 

Krit Kamtuo, a Technical Evangelist and a groom-to-be, added “I wasn’t expecting these benefits. I am happy that Microsoft is giving importance to family, which is a foundation of everything. As a person who is about to start a family, I definitely will have a chance to use these new benefits. I feel fortunate to be a part of this organization, and would like to thank Microsoft executives team for their great work.”

In addition, the company introduced a new family caregiver leave benefits: four weeks of paid leave at 100 percent to take care of an immediate family member with a serious health condition[1].

Ruchadawan Sudseang, Partner Sales Lead, and a previous caregiver said, “Two years ago, my mother passed away from cancer. When she was diagnosed, the disease was already in the terminal stage, and doctors could do nothing about it. I made a decision to stay home and take care of her, being by her side until the end and sharing whatever time we had left together. I really appreciate that Microsoft allowed me to work from home for about eight months until my mother’s passing. I did the best I could, but it became so tough, especially during the final month, to work and try to do your best for the person you love the most in your life. I am sure the new benefits will have a positive impact on caregivers as they will be able to fully focus on their loved one, especially during the most difficult times, without the need to worry about their job security.”

We hope these changes will further demonstrate how much Microsoft cares about our employees, and help them transition back to the workplace at a time and pace that is appropriate to developments in their personal lives,” concluded Chutima Sribumrungsart.

[1]  Note: Family broadly includes a spouse, domestic partner, custodial parent, non-custodial parent, adoptive parent, foster parent, biological parent, parent-in-law, parent of domestic partner, sibling, grandparent, or grandchild of the employee, or a person with whom the employee is or was in a relationship with in lieu of a parent.