Drugs Major Novartis Announces Six Month Long Gender Neutral Parental Leave In India

Drug major, Novartis on Monday (1 July) announced a 26-week gender neutral parental leave for all its employees across India. The policy is now effective and applies to birthing and non-birthing parents in the case of birth, adoption and surrogacy, reports Economic Times.

The company believes that the said move would go on to enrich the workplace and foster an inclusive culture in the organisation. "Our parental leave policy is a symbol of equality for all new parents in the company, offering choice and giving both parents precious time to spend bonding with their new baby," Country President of Novartis for India, Sanjay Murdeshwar said.

The company has also announced that there would be no cap on the number of births for which the policy would remain effective. Also, it should be noted that in case of premature birth, depending on the number of weeks of pre-maturity, employees will also be eligible to avail additional parental leave.

The drugs manufacturing giant will also be providing necessary coaching to its associates going on parental leave, to ensure a seamless reintegration into the workplace when they resume work again.