Flo Health Inc, the developer of Flo, a world-leading female health app, has announced it will offer six months of fully paid maternity leave, and one month of fully paid paternity leave as part of its new global parental leave policies. The policy was rolled out globally across the company’s offices in London, Amsterdam, Minsk, Vilnius and San Francisco this Spring after finding that the statutory entitlements and local market practices in each of its operating countries were simply not enough.

In the tech industry where competition for talent is high,  87% of women consider a reputation for inclusive hiring and flexible working a top priority in a potential employer¹, and only 24% of professionals return to their employer after a career break². Generous and flexible parental leave offerings both for new moms as well as dads are essential to attracting, retaining and growing talent across the industry.

Currently, the US offers as little as four weeks of paid maternity leave, with only 58% of companies paying salary for this time. While the UK offers 52 weeks of statutory maternity leave, only 39 of those weeks are paid. The first six weeks offer 90% of their average weekly earnings, and the remaining 33 weeks offer a flat rate of £151.97 or 90% of their average weekly earnings (whichever is lower). The Netherlands offers 16 weeks of paid maternity leave, though earnings are capped by statutory limits.

“Flo exists to empower women and girls across the globe to take charge of their health at every stage of their life, including motherhood,” said Ann Roberts, Chief People Officer of Flo. “Being in the tech industry, women are often underrepresented, in part due to the motherhood penalty. Flo is an exception in the global tech scene with over 50% female employees across our organization, as well as on our executive leadership team. Offering new moms sustainable parental policies that support them through early motherhood and their return to work is simply the right thing for us to do. We’re proud to pioneer this effort across the industry.”

The policy also applies to same-sex partnerships and adoptive parents, regardless of the country they are employed in, their seniority or tenure with the business. For more information about careers & benefits at Flo, visit https://flo.health/careers.