Buy now, pay later company Zip Co has introduced a new bereavement leave policy for working women. The policy gives working women and their partners the right to paid leave after suffering a miscarriage or pregnancy loss.
According to Zip, the idea for the new bereavement leave policy was sparked in March this year, when the New Zealand government passed legislation providing paid leave for parents who have lost a pregnancy.
A compassionate bereavement leave policy
A quarter of all pregnancies end in miscarriage. As a result, Zip hopes to create a space to normalize and change the conversation around miscarriage. The leave period is intended to allow women and partners to come to terms with the loss. This way, they will not have to dip into their sick leave. The buy now pay later company says allowing parents this space is critically important for mental recovery.
Zip’s new policy offers parents two weeks of paid leave for those who experience miscarriage or pregnancy loss in the first 20 weeks. After that period, the standard parental leave policy applies, offering 16 weeks of paid leave to primary carers and four weeks to secondary carers.
The policy applies to both full and part-time employees and all genders. It is offered regardless of how long employees have been with the company.
Zip has 700 employees globally. They hope other Australian and international companies will follow their example and put in place similar steps to support their staff.
Zip also offers primary caregivers who come back from parental leave their full-time salary for the first three months. This applies even if they only work part-time. It pays superannuation on all parental leave and has extended the domestic violence policy to provide 10 days of paid leave for victims. There is an option to take extra time, if needed.
About Zip Co
Zip is one of the larges buy now, pay later providers in Australia. The company has over two million customers across Australia and New Zealand and has transacted over $6 billion since 2013. It offers interest free installment payment plans. Additionally, Zip Business Capital offers unsecured business loans of up to $500k. Small businesses can use the loans support business growth.
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