Do you have a team member preparing for parental leave and want to ensure you understand how to support? There are many things to consider when we think about parental leave as a manager. This toolkit is for everyone who is managing someone who is expecting to become, or has recently become, a parent.
If you have a team member going out on parental leave, a common question might be "how should I reallocate their tasks and output while they are out?" Below are general guidelines for managers based on the length of leave taken by the team member. Note - local law supersedes these guidelines where applicable:
We want our team members to feel supported throughout the entire life-cycle of their leave. Returning from any leave is hard, and navigating work and parenthood can be challenging. Parental Leave Reentry Buddies are an important part in supporting our team members returning from leave, and we ask GitLab team members to volunteer (being a parent yourself is not required).
A Parental Leave Reentry Buddy helps team members reconnect with GitLab and ease back into working after parental leave. A Parental Leave Reentry Buddy is an advocate for a successful return to work, and is able to empathize with concerns about reentering the workplace.
Responsibilities may include but are not limited to:
Future iterations are still being considered, and will be added to this section as the program evolves. If you have any feedback regarding this program, please contact leaves@gitlab.com
or share in the #people-connect
Slack channel.
Visit the GitLab Team page and search for 'Parental Leave Reentry Buddy', or ask on Slack in #intheparenthood
.
leaves@gitlab.com
or post in the #people-connect
Slack channel if you're interested in becoming a Parental Leave Reentry buddy or would like more information.Add Parental Leave Reentry buddy
to the departments
section in your entry (keeping your existing departments):
departments:
- ...
- Parental Leave Reentry buddy
Add the following code above the expertise
section in your entry:
expertise: |
<li><a href="/handbook/total-rewards/benefits/parental-leave-toolkit/">Parental Leave Reentry buddy</a></li>
If you already have an expertise
section, add the list item portion of the above code:
<li><a href="/handbook/total-rewards/benefits/parental-leave-toolkit/">Parental Leave Reentry buddy</a></li>
A nice way to celebrate a team member's new addition to their family is by hosting a virtual baby/growing your family shower. In colocated companies, this is something that teams often do to wish a team member well as they head out on parental or adoption leave. We encourage virtual showers to be considered for all team members (not just birthing parents). In order to help teams host a virtual shower, here are some resources that can help you get started:
#intheparenthood
(Join Slack channel - for GitLab team members only)How Working Moms can Do it All
:
How Working Moms can Ask for Help at Home
If you have any feedback about your parental leave experience for the People group to review you can always email leaves@gitlab.com
or open an issue using our Parental Feedback Issue Template.
Return to the main GitLab Benefits page.