Target expanding employees’ family-care benefits

Target Corp. is expanding and enhancing  the benefits it offers full- and part-time employees as retailers continue to look for new ways to attract and retain workers in a tight labor market.

The discounter said the family-focused enhancements, which are available to hourly and salaried associates at its stores, distribution centers and headquarters, pick up where traditional parental leave policies end, “so our team members can support their families for years to come.” The benefits included new paid family leave and expanded backup care programs and the doubling of adoption and surrogacy reimbursements.

Target has raised its starting wage to $13 an hour, with a goal of increasing it to $15 an hour by the end of 2020.

“We’ve taken a strong position on minimum starting wages, but that’s just one facet of our team member experience,” said Melissa Kremer, chief human resources officer, Target. “Our team finds so much support here to grow their skills and careers, make a difference in their communities, and take care of themselves and their families—including benefits that we’re enhancing to be more relevant across a breadth of life stages. Retail workforces are unique in their mix of hourly and salaried positions, and one of our philosophies is to offer the same family-focused benefits to both hourly and salaried team members.”

Here is a look at Target’s enhanced benefits.

•Paid family leave: Target’s new paid family leave policy allows an associate some extended time off to support their family—whether it is to welcome a new baby or care for a partner or ailing parent.  Under the new policy, associates will receive double the amount of paid time off when welcoming a new child, whether by birth, adoption, surrogacy or foster placement.  (That’s on top of the medical leave a team member receives after giving birth to a baby.)

•Expanded back-up care: Beginning this fall, Target will extend affordable backup care solutions to its  hourly and salaried team members at all stores and distribution centers. The program, which it initially rolled out at headquarters, will include 20 days total of subsidized in-center childcare or in-home child- and eldercare.

•Doubling adoption and surrogacy reimbursement: Noting the long, complex processes and high costs that families welcoming children through adoption or surrogacy can face, Target has doubled the amount it will reimburse for associates’ adoption or surrogacy fees. (The retailer has offered this benefit for more than 10 years to its hourly and salaried associates.)

This new benefit, starting June 30, gives hourly and salaried team members, including part-time employees, the flexibility to care for their families.

Target’s new paid family leave program, which starts on June 30, gives employees, the flexibility to care for their families. When welcoming a new child, whether by birth, adoption, surrogacy or foster placement, team members will receive double the amount of paid time off to care for their newest family member. (That’s on top of the medical leave a team member receives after giving birth to a baby.)