Dive Brief:

• While 87% of working women said their employer's benefits package were important or very important to them in considering a job offer, 40% found the women's health and family-friendly benefits at their current employer to be subpar, according to a survey of 1,000 professional women by Fairygodboss in partnership with Extend Fertility.  
• The survey found that certain benefits can cause women to have a more positive image of a company, apply for a job there and remain on staff. Paid leave benefits had an extremely positive impact on women of all ethnicities and age groups, including those who aren't planning to have children.
• Survey results also showed the need for greater awareness of certain benefits, including in vitro fertilization and egg freezing.

Dive Insight:

Employees have made their benefits preferences clear in study after study. They strongly favor sound, comprehensive health coverage and paid family leave, which more companies, states and municipalities now offer in absence of a federal mandate. Workers have also identified these benefits, along with some perks, as preferences that would persuade them to apply for a job, accept an offer and remain with an employer.  

Women, in particular, eye employer benefits as a key component of the job search; 68% of women in a LinkedIn study considered salary and benefits information the most important part of a job description. Retention benefits of offering leave, however, may not remain if the company's culture does not support people actually taking that leave. One study published last year in the Journal of Applied Psychology revealed that women who take longer maternity leaves are considered less committed to their jobs and less apt to be leaders — an opinion held by male and female managers alike.

To combat the rise of potential bias, parental bonding leave should be offered equally to fathers and mothers; employers may also want to consider a phased return-to-work policy that allows new parents to more easily re-enter the workforce. Lactation policies, too, could help ensure new mothers feel welcome, including access to a wellness room.