Google has announced that it will expand its UK family-building benefits this year as part of its commitment to supporting its employees in important life moments.
From April, the employer’s UK family-building benefits package will include in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) and intrauterine insemination (IUI) through its private medical insurance (PMI) plan, allowing employees and their partners access to four rounds of IVF. Within the next year, it will include elective egg freezing, adoption and surrogacy, as well as education and personalised support for navigating through options.
Its PMI plan currently offers support for an ectopic pregnancy, a molar pregnancy or abnormal cell growth in the womb, a retained placenta, eclampsia, postpartum haemorrhage, miscarriage requiring immediate surgical treatment, symptoms related to pelvic floor health, cryopreservation and egg storage for those transitioning from one gender to another, and funding for gender reassignment surgery.
Google decided to introduce this support as part of its acknowledgement that the path to parenthood looks different for everyone, and its commitment to investing in benefits that it can scale to be accessible and helpful for employees’ productivity and wellbeing.
Debbie Weinstein, vice president and managing director for Google UK and Ireland, said: “These benefits will enable us to offer invaluable support to our employees during each stage of growing their families, from preconception through to returning to work. As both a mother and a business leader, I understand both how challenging and rewarding parenthood can be and I’m proud that we’ll soon be able to offer all of our UK-based employees this industry leading support during these moments that matter.”
Google’s existing benefits include a global minimum of 18 weeks of paid leave for all new parents, a minimum of 24 weeks for birthing parents, flexible work arrangements, onsite lactation rooms, backup childcare support, up to 26 weeks of paid leave for one parent and 18 weeks of baby bonding for the other parent. Its health plan covers GP referrals to specialists for the investigation of menopause symptoms and eligible treatments recommended by a specialist.