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What I've Been Reading This Week: Netflix's Parental Leave Policy


Given all the attention to Netflix's parental leave policy announced recently, I thought it was appropriate to point readers towards some additional articles on the topic.  Unsurprisingly, there are supporters and critics of the new policy.  I think it is worth a look at both sides of the argument, in order to get a better understanding of how this policy will impact workers going forward.

As always, below are a few articles that caught my eye this week.


The Challenge Facing Netflix's Parental Leave Policy...& a Possible Solution?

Business Insider has a well thought out look at one of the main challenges facing Netflix's parental leave policy:  The uneasiness/unwillingness of workers to actually use the leave provided by the new policy out of fear that they will become expendable, not be able to catchup on the work they miss, burden their coworkers, etc.  The same line of reasoning often applies to why workers do not use all of their vacation time.  However, the article notes a possible solution to the issue, should Netflix embrace the concept.



As Rex Huppke over at The Chicago Tribune puts it, paid maternity leave in the United States is less than adequate.  In fact, he writes "When it comes to paid maternity leave, we, as a country, suck."  That is certainly one way to be address the matter.  But as Rex points out, this Netflix policy moves in a bold direction, one that many companies would be wise to follow, given the need for longer parental leave in this country.  Note, I included this article for a simple reason:  Rex makes some sweeping arguments against proponents of the new policy that I think readers can draw from in order to better understand exactly how this policy will impact Netflix workers (and potentially others), going forward.



This is a thorough article from the Huffington Post that delves into the Netflix workforce that will not be able to utilize the new parental leave policy.  As the article notes, treating these Netflix workers in the DVD distribution centers differently could prove to be a potential risk that could backfire.  For now, these workers are excluded from the new policy...but could that change?  Perhaps; time will tell.

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