When Jennifer Young, a global human resources business solutions consultant at Manulife Financial Corp., found out she was expecting her first child in 2021, she thought the coronavirus pandemic would pose the biggest challenge to a healthy pregnancy.
But, like many parents, her journey into motherhood ended up requiring a circle of care dependent on a host of support tools to ensure her family was happy, healthy and thriving.
Two months into her pregnancy, Young started experiencing hyperemesis gravidarum and was put on bed rest. “It was a scary time for me. I expected a little bit of illness, but it hit me very hard very quickly. . . . Out of nowhere, I just started vomiting around the clock.”
She was able to take short-term disability leave for six months until she began to feel strong enough. Manulife’s STD program includes a salary top-up at 100 per cent for up to 26 weeks for employees who have been with the company 10 years or longer. Workers who have been with the company for less than 10 years receive a top-up of 100 per cent for nine weeks, followed by a top-up of 80 per cent for an additional 17 weeks.
Read: 2024 Mental Health Summit: Early intervention, integrated solutions key to managing disability
Once she had her son, Austin, Young then transitioned to maternity leave. Manulife provides 20 weeks of parental leave to all employees in Canada and the U.S., whether they’re birth, adoptive or foster parents, with a top-up of 100 per cent of their salary and annual incentive pay. Employees who aren’t the primary caregiver receive 12 weeks of paid parental and adoption leave that also includes a top-up of 100 per cent of salary and annual incentive pay. She was also able to use her vacation time to extend her maternity leave by roughly three weeks.
Young also found out her baby was in a breeched position, which had dislocated a couple of her ribs, requiring chiropractic care.
A holistic care circle
But Young’s challenges didn’t end once home with her newborn. Two months into her maternity leave, she was diagnosed with post-partum depression. With the help of Manulife’s mental-health benefits, she was able to get the care she and her family needed to clear this new hurdle. The organization provides employees with $12,000 in mental-health coverage, as well as an additional $12,000 for each eligible family member.
Workers who understand benefits plan happier, more stable
The company’s suite of mental-health benefits includes coverage for clinical counsellors, family therapists, marriage therapists, psychoanalysts, psychotherapists, psychologists and social workers. The expansive list of providers was a life saver for Young because it wasn’t one specific practitioner that helped her post-partum. She was also able to access marital counselling with her spouse to navigate that difficult period as a couple.
Read: Manulife lowers STD claims with mental-health benefits boost
“My partner needed help learning how to support me. This was a challenging time for him as well, so he needed support for his own mental well-being. And in sharing my story, colleagues have approached me about the strain of the post-partum period that they’re also experiencing to learn of the supports I accessed during that time.”
Through Manulife’s mental-health coverage, she also enlisted the help of a sleep consultant, who helped the couple figure out their newborn’s sleeping situation. “[Austin] was colicky and I wasn’t sleeping. . . . That was also a huge contributing factor to my depression. So even that sleep consultant was a key piece.”
Young’s experience reflects the complexity of holistic health needs and the roles of various support tools in addressing a multi-layered health issue, says Michelle Taylor-Jones, Manulife’s global chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer.
“A component of our DEI strategy, particularly as we think about gender equity in the organization, is building a culture of psychological safety. Our commitment to inclusion and psychological safety is underscored by our comprehensive health and well-being benefits and support tools. Young’s story shows our employees feel psychologically safe enough to share their health stories and the ways they’ve been able to draw on our competitive benefits.”
Employers who don’t have the means to offer high-cost benefits can look to other support options. The No. 1 benefit that employers of all sizes can offer is flexibility, says Allison Venditti, an HR consultant and founder of Moms at Work. By offering flexibility, employers are telling employees they want them to return from parental leave with a happy mindset so they can bring their best self to work.
Read: Connecting DEI initiatives to employees’ mental well-being
It’s important for employers to view their benefits plans as a living, breathing entity that needs nurturing, adds Taylor-Jones. “As society and the workforce evolves, so, too, should employers’ benefits plans. What made sense 10 years ago may not fit the needs of employees today.”
Manulife reviews its benefits annually and examines the utilization and engagement with each offering to gauge whether they’re working for employees. “We look at the claims that are generated and the clinical needs and . . . try to predict what might be coming and address programs that way.”
Feedback on how employees use their benefits is crucial and Venditti notes many employers aren’t analyzing their employees’ usage of benefits. “If you’re spending all this money purchasing [benefits] and no one’s using it, you have two problems: either . . . you’ve totally misread your employees and that’s not what they want or [there’s] a communication problem and people don’t know [the offerings] exist.”
When employees use their benefits, employers get a real-world view of how their investment is making a difference, says Taylor Jones. The needs of diverse generations in the workforce are changing expectations of what a holistic benefits program looks like. “Every employee is an asset to an organization, so it’s critical to provide a diverse range of options that addresses their needs comprehensively.”
Shouting it from the rooftops
While Manulife’s disability program was a lifesaver for Young, she admits she wasn’t aware of just how comprehensive the coverage was until she needed to use it.
Benefits communications can help employers optimize their offerings to reduce costs, says Venditti, recommending companies have a plan in place that ensures employees are aware of their benefits and know how to access them. Benefits information can also serve as a valuable attraction and retention tool. “People are making choices [on where to apply for jobs] based on the benefits that are offered, so if you add information on your website . . . that’s something people would [join and] stay for.”
Read: Half of benefits plan members understand their plan extremely or very well: survey
By having her employer’s support throughout her journey into motherhood, Young says she was in the right frame of mind to transition back into the workplace. “If I didn’t have that type of care I couldn’t have returned in the right state. . . . I came back a thankful, healthy happy employee.”
Lauren Bailey is an associate editor at Benefits Canada and the Canadian Investment Review.