Balancing work and family is an issue most career women face. Working Mother magazine has released its 21st list of the Top 100 companies for working mothers. Below are
10 examples of the best companies for moms. You can see the full list at the magazine's site, http://www.workingmother.com.
The criteria this year included programs the editors "could only imagine a few years ago," among them 16 months of maternity leave, free backup care, phase-back programs and
$10,000 in adoption reimbursement.
The extensive application completed by each company includes detailed questions about the workforce, compensation, child-care and flexibility programs, leave policies and more.
It checks the usage, availability and tracking of programs, as well as the accountability of managers who oversee them. It's not enough to have a great program if no one is using
it.
PR professionals should take note of these best practices for keeping your key female employees satisfied.
- Accenture embodies flexibility, with 60 percent of its staff working on flex time or telecommuting. Women make up 19 percent of corporate executives, but quarterly
group reviews ensure that future female stars are identified.
- Bank of America subsidizes 65 percent of the cost of care at its three on-site day-care centers at headquarters and in Jacksonville, FL. Employees in 10 cities can take
advantage of the Snowy Day backup-care program when nasty weather keeps their kids out of school.
- Carlson Companies' employee assistance program is extremely comprehensive, offering help with everything from finding tutors for children facing learning challenges to
locating aid for elderly parents and guiding teens through the college application process. The firm just boosted its adoption leave to six paid weeks from one, depending on years
of service.
- At Deutsche Bank, a women's network was formally re-launched in 2005 as Women on Wall Street. Its goal: to address the issues female employees care about most and help
them advance in their careers. Networking opportunities, business lunches, conferences and workshops are sponsored by the network.
- Leading drug company Eli Lilly & Co. gives employees plenty of latitude to create their own schedules (with supervisor approval), asking only that they structure
them around the core hours of 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Flexible work arrangements are encouraged: Nearly half of all staffers telecommute.
- In 2005, Ford Motor Co. launched a formal internal mentoring program, the Ford Senior Women's Initiative, to pair high-potential women with vice presidents who serve as
their mentors, offering advice and advocating for their best interests. And expectant moms get two weeks of paid pre-maternity leave.
- General Mills, which produces some of the world's leading brands - including Cheerios, Hagen-Dazs and Pillsbury - believes that to attract and retain great female
employees, flexible work policies must be in place. Employees can flex or compress their work schedules, telecommute or job-share.
- Harvard University's new moms with one year of service receive an additional week of leave beyond FMLA benefits and partial pay for 12 weeks of their leave. New dads
and adoptive parents can choose one week paid in full or four weeks at partial pay. In-home emergency backup-care hours were extended last year.
- Every IKEA store has clean, private facilities for employee nursing mothers, as well as private areas equipped with computer access to lactation assistance. The company
doesn't offer child care - but that's because a work/life survey indicated that less than 7 percent of its U.S. employees use formal child care.
- Johnson & Johnson. Moms and dads - including those who adopt - get equal treatment when it comes to taking time for family bonding: up to 52 weeks of leave. After
five years at the company, new moms receive full pay for up to 26 weeks.