With Father’s Day approaching, it’s natural to pause and appreciate the joys and challenges of being a parent. Little in life has raised my spirits as high, while keeping my feet firmly on the ground, as being a dad.
The experience of raising a family is not only key to my personal story, but also aligns with the origin and legacy of Walmart, a family-based company. The many roles parents take on – mentor, confidant, educator, consoler – all add up to play a crucial role in fostering future generations and communities. That’s why providing quality, comprehensive and affordable health care for our Walmart and Sam’s Club associates, especially when it comes to supporting the many paths to parenthood, is incredibly important to us.
One fantastic example is our new Center of Excellence for fertility care that we had the privilege to launch last year. Associates and their family members enrolled in most Walmart medical plans now have coverage for high-quality fertility treatments, including intrauterine insemination (IUI), in vitro fertilization (IVF), egg freezing and donor services. We know this benefit is impactful, as more than 1,300 associate families have used the program within the first seven months of launch.
Tyler Welch, Store Lead at Store 569 in Columbia, Kentucky, and his wife, Chelsea, are one of those families. Through their years-long process of trying to grow their family, they realized IVF was ultimately the best option and turned to Walmart’s benefit for support. We are thrilled that they are now looking forward to welcoming a baby boy in October, and Tyler said he’s “excited for every part of being a dad.”
Additionally, eligible associates have access to up to a combined $20,000 towards adoption and surrogacy expenses – even if they’re not enrolled in a Walmart medical plan. Before, during and after pregnancies, associates on a Walmart medical plan can connect with a registered nurse for guidance on a range of topics from preconception to early childhood, or, in select areas, a Doula for emotional and physical support.
Earlier this year, we expanded our Parental Pay Policy for salaried associates from six weeks to 12 weeks. So, when an eligible associate welcomes a child through birth, adoption or foster placement, they can now take up to 12 weeks of paid time off. This also means that eligible birth mothers can now receive up to 22 weeks of paid time off when parental leave is combined with maternity leave. Just last year, more than 32,000 Walmart parents took advantage of our maternity leave, parental leave and adoption benefits.
So, whether our associates are currently parents or on their paths to becoming parents – support is available for all stages of their journey. I want to wish a Happy Father’s Day to all Walmart and Sam’s Club dads and soon-to-be dads, like Tyler! It’s the role of a lifetime.
