Snapdeal announces additional maternity benefits, two-week paternity leave

As companies look to welcome staff back to office, Snapdeal update to its maternity leave policy comes keeping in mind the ongoing pandemic and apprehensions new mothers may have

Gurugram-based e-commerce firm Snapdeal, which has repositioned itself as a value e-commerce company, said on Thursday it would offer new mothers the option to work from home for six months, in addition to six months of maternity leave.

As companies look to welcome employees back to the office, Snapdeal announced this update to its maternity leave policy keeping in mind the ongoing pandemic and apprehensions that new mothers may have while returning to the office.

“We all are acutely aware that childcare is not easy and women ofen leave the workforce because they cannot find flexible arrangements to balance home and work. And now that offices are reopening everywhere, we also heard from new mothers that while they are looking forward to being back at work, they have apprehensions about putting their infant’s health at risk. Taking all these into consideration, we have decided to enable this opportunity for new mothers to be at home with their babies for a longer period of time,” said a Snapdeal spokesperson.

In addition to maternity leave, Snapdeal also has several other benefits for new parents including two weeks of paternity leave and twelve weeks of adoption leave as part of its “Parenting Partners Program.”

“The emotional and physical well-being of our team is of immense importance to us. Offering benefits that support this, like giving moms and dads the opportunity to be at home with their new child for a longer period of time, provides the security and balance needed for our people to be able to build long-term careers with us,” the Snapdeal spokesperson added.

In another wellness measure for the team, Snapdeal also announced a one day period leave every month for all its women employees, which will be in addition to the entitled sick/ casual leaves that they are entitled to.

Last August, Zomato introduced period leaves for its employees, making it one of the first companies in India to do so.

Snapdeal is also conducting a month-long campaign to make period talk normal and create awareness about the same. As part of the campaign, male team members got the chance to use a simulator to experience the period cramps that many women experience through the year.

The company has been making efforts to break stigmas and encourage honest conversations on mental health and well-being. Last year Snapdeal started providing its employees and their family members access to licensed counselors, in addition to meditation and breathwork classes.