Barclays Introduces Equal Childcare Leave for US Colleagues

June 30, 2023 at 09:00 AM EDT

Supporting new and expectant parents to successfully integrate their professional and personal lives

Barclays today announced enhancements to its childcare leave policy in support of all new and expectant parents in the US.

The changes are effective July 1, 2023 and will provide all new parents in the US with 16 weeks of paid childcare leave, and an additional six to eight weeks paid time off for birth mothers to recover from childbirth through a separate recovery leave. The policy covers all new parents, including men, women, those who identify as non-binary, same-sex families, and people who are adopting or foster parenting.

“We are continually investing in our employees and refining our benefits to ensure Barclays remains a great place to work,” said Richard Haworth, CEO, Americas.

These enhancements are part of a range of benefits designed to help colleagues successfully integrate their professional and personal lives, and demonstrate Barclays’ continued commitment to create a diverse, equitable and inclusive environment. Other market-leading benefits at Barclays include family-building support, back-up childcare solutions, at-work assistance, on-site health centers, flexible work arrangements, and more.

Changes to childcare leave effective July 1, 2023

Removal of primary/non-primary caregiver distinction

The current childcare leave policy provides primary caregivers with 16 weeks of paid childcare leave and non-primary caregivers with six weeks of paid childcare leave.

For births, adoptions or foster care placements occurring on or after July 1, 2023, the primary/non-primary distinction will be eliminated, and all new parents will be eligible for 16 weeks of paid childcare leave.

Recovery leave

Currently, birth mothers are eligible for recovery leave which begins immediately after their child’s birth and runs concurrently with their childcare leave.

For births on or after July 1, 2023, birth mothers will have a recovery leave that runs prior to their 16 weeks of childcare leave. While the length of the recovery leave is dependent on the nature of the birth, most birth mothers will receive anywhere from six to eight weeks of recovery leave plus 16 weeks of childcare leave, bringing their total paid leave to 22 to 24 weeks.

About Barclays

Barclays is a British universal bank. We are diversified by business, by different types of customer and client, and geography. Our businesses include consumer banking and payments operations around the world, as well as a top-tier, full service, global corporate and investment bank, all of which are supported by our service company which provides technology, operations and functional services across the Group. For further information about Barclays, please visit our website home.barclays