Supermarket Asda has enhanced its family-friendly policies for its 140,000 employees in order to strengthen the support it offers during key life moments.
It has increased maternity and adoption leave pay for hourly-paid employees from 12 weeks to 26 weeks, doubled paternity leave from two weeks to four weeks at full contractual pay, and enhanced its existing pregnancy loss policy to provide two weeks of paid leave for those who experience a loss before 24 weeks.
It has also introduced a kinship carers policy that provides 26 weeks of leave and pay for primary kinship carers and extended paternity leave and pay to secondary kinship carers.
The updated policy is intended to provide enhanced support, flexibility, and compassion above the normal statutory leave and pay for employees navigating parenthood, caregiving and personal loss.
Helen Selby, general counsel and interim chief people officer at Asda, said: “We’re proud to be introducing new and enhanced family-friendly policies, which underline our commitment to fostering an inclusive and employee-focused workplace. We want our employees to feel supported during some of the most important, and occasionally most challenging, moments in their lives. These changes further build on the progress we’ve made over the last year in supporting the beating heart of our business, our fantastic employees.”
Jayne Allport, national officer at Usdaw, added: “Following ongoing discussions between Asda and Usdaw, we are pleased that the organisation has committed to providing valuable, additional support for our members when they need it most. We welcome that the organisation values the parents and carers working for [it] and understands their needs in balancing life and work.”
Asda launched a neonatal care leave policy in November 2024 that provides additional leave and pay if an employee’s baby is born needing neonatal care treatment. They can take seven full days when their baby in in neonatal care treatment and up to a maximum of 12 paid weeks, in addition to maternity, paternity or adoption leave.
