Microsoft Updates Parental Leave Policy

A day after Netflix announced significant changes to its policy of parental, permission technological giant Microsoft has unveiled updates for employees who will be mothers or fathers.

In a statement released Wednesday says that Microsoft is extending the license to the parents of 12 weeks with full pay. Birth mothers can also earn eight weeks of maternity disability leave "with full pay.The company says it will also allow biological mothers to use short-term disability leave during the two weeks before her due date. The changes will into force on 1 November.

"While we ask our employees to bring their" A "game to work every day to achieve our mission, we believe it is our responsibility to create an environment where people can do their best work," said Kathleen Hogan, executive vice president HR Microsoft, in a statement. "A key component of this is supporting our employees with major benefits for them."

Microsoft also said the new parents may choose to do a full 12-week period off or divided into two stretches.On Tuesday, Netflix announced it was stepping up its policy of parental leave by offering paid leave up to a year for the birth of a child or adoption. Employees were allowed to come back and leave again, if necessary, and continue to earn their regular wage for all. Netflix already offered one "unlimited" instead of politics.

The policies are "way above and beyond" what they offer most US companies, says Emily Martin, vice president and general counsel with the National Law Center for Women. "More and more companies are recognizing that the provision of a good family leave is not only good for employees, but good for business," says Martin.

This is a significant shift in thinking in the United States, which ranks last among the 38 countries of parental leave supported by the government, according to a 2013 report by the Pew Research Center. "The work done by academics, politicians and organizations to change expectations on parental leave in the United States was built in the last ten years," says Katherine Phillips, vice dean of the Columbia Business School.

However, Phillips says companies must ensure that employees are comfortable time off without worrying about the possible impact on his career. "It's not just to make time available," said, "We have to change the values, expectations and stigma surrounding the use of this free time to the demands of parenthood."