Our Paid Parental Leave policy offers the broadest range of possible parenting scenarios.  We do not offer based on traditional “maternity” and “paternity” roles tied to gender.  We also do not offer based on type of delivery or whether a family’s new addition was through childbirth, adoption or surrogacy.

One point of distinction in our policy is the difference between what constitutes a “Primary” versus “Secondary” caregiver.

The most obvious distinction of course is the amount of paid time off available:

Primary Caregiver = 20 weeks of Paid Leave

Secondary Caregiver = 3 weeks of Paid Leave

But who is a primary caregiver and who is secondary?  According to our policy, a “Primary Caregiver” is the person who regularly provides the child with the majority of his or her care during the entire period of the Parental Leave.  The definition of “Primary Caregiver” is not based on gender.  Instead, this definition applies when there is not another person in charge of caring for a child such as a babysitter, grandparent or other stay-at home-parent.  A “Secondary Caregiver” is a parent who is accompanied by the presence of another “Primary Caregiver” at the same time that they are present.