Social media organisation Pinterest is to launch new family-focused benefits to help support employees with the financial costs associated with adoption and surrogacy.
The adoption assistance benefit will allow employees going through the adoption process to receive a reimbursement of up to $5,000 (£3,935) in net benefits.
Employees who are working with a surrogate will be entitled to receive a reimbursement in net benefits of up to $20,000 (£15,742).
The benefits are designed to help employees cover the costs involved with adoption and surrogacy, such as travel expenses, and agency and legal fees.
The new benefits will come into effect on 1 July 2017. They will run alongside the organisation’s current family-friendly benefits. This includes 16 weeks of parental leave, and fertility benefits of up to $20,000.
Candice Morgan, head of inclusion and diversity at Pinterest, said: “Diversity and inclusion are woven into the fabric of our culture. As our [organisation] grows, so do the needs of each employee, including those starting families.
“Our people team often speaks with employees to learn more about how we should expand our benefits, and we recently spoke with a colleague who’s been looking into surrogacy with his husband. The high costs associated with surrogacy were raised, and we begun looking into how we could help him, and others in similar situations, ease the financial burden.
“We look forward to continuing to expand the benefits and growing our culture […] so that all employees and their families feel represented and supported.”
