Alexis Ohanian, the founder of Reddit, is speaking up for parental leave after he took 16 weeks paid paternal leave in 2017 when his daughter Olympia was born. As a guest writer in The New York Times, Ohanian makes the case that all people, including fathers, deserve to spend quality time with their family as well as have a rewarding work life.

It's a compelling case, and an argument that understandably resonates with many Americans— why choose between family and work? It shouldn't have to be a choice—you can have both. Employers need to recognize the importance for any individual, regardless of gender, to have parental leave benefits.

The business case

While it's clear that paid parental leave helps families who are raising children, there's still an enormous case to be made that it benefits businesses as well. More than a goodwill gesture, parental leave holds colossal weight for the business in respect to employer brand, attracting talent and ensuring your company benefits from a skilled and diverse workforce.

Ohanian's Reddit, and other tech companies, lead other sectors when taking positive steps with parental leave. Everyone will remember Netflix stealing headlines in 2015 when it announced unlimited parental leave for all employees. The firm's then Chief Talent Officer, Tawni Cranz, said that employees would return to work more focused and dedicated.

Fast forward to 2019, and the US still does not mandate paid maternity leave—alongside five other countries including Lesotho and Swaziland. However regardless of whether law mandates it, companies must recognize the importance of rewarding leave to their employees becoming new dads – not only because it's great for employees, but because it benefits the company too.

Breaking the stigma

US workers who take paid parental leave can be concerned that they will be perceived to be less dedicated or committed, which creates a workplace culture that doesn't support its employees or their well-being. Companies need to encourage employees to take the full amount of paid parental leave so they can help support their families and look after their own well-being.

Benefits technology can help employees understand and access their benefits whenever they need. Organizations can also see which parental leave benefits are most appreciated—for example time off, flexibility, remote working or monetary benefits – further allowing them to offer the most relevant benefits to support their workforce.

Equality of the sexes

Our Global Employee Benefits Watch report found a larger proportion of younger employees are focused on starting a family than their older counterparts. But the employee benefit options within organizations do not recognize the different requirements among generations, nor different genders.

Many organizations still only offer comprehensive parental benefits to expectant mothers and not fathers. The repercussions of this can be costly, and JPMorgan Chase just settled a $5 million case with thousands of men who filed for primary caregiver leave but were denied it in the last seven years.

Being a parent is meant to be exciting, not filled with stressors that can be avoided by organizations offering equal leave to both expectant mothers and fathers. As a father myself who has taken parental leave, I believe it's important that organizations prioritize comprehensive parental benefits that foster engagement and loyalty in return.

From this, a clear culture of care manifests itself and shows employees that you are prioritizing their needs. In the end, everyone wins and it's time for the US to follow in the footsteps of countries like Finland and Sweden who offer generous parental leave benefits for every expectant parent.

Matthew Jackson is VP of proposition and client solutions at Thomsons Online Benefits.

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Why paid parental leave is business critical

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