Apple Announces Expanded Employee Benefits for New Parents

[burgundyyears]

If you think your kids won't toss you into a nursing home to die alone faster than they tossed that new shiny toy when it broke then I have new for you that you may not like.

This! There is always so little discussion about this topic on these sorts of articles because there isn't a huge difference in US and European attitudes towards grandma and grandpa - you toss 'em in the cheapest home you can find when they get to be too much of a problem. If you want to experience actual social stigma, little to no societal or employer support, and lack of understanding, try to be a caretaker of an ill or elderly parent. Pretty much the entire system severely penalizes that sort of activity, from medicaid programs that actively penalize caretaker relatives to employers that generally offer zero benefits whatsoever - you are expected and incentivized to toss them in a home and forget about them just as quick as you possibly can.

 

[PickUrPoison]

This. Apple's recent trend is to hire temporary workers from Volt, Kelly Services, and other contract labor firms, keep them for less than a full year, not hire them, then they can report lower fixed costs on their balance sheets for wall street. It sucks, and it creates a caste system within Apple.

Source: Worked for Apple as a contractor on 3 separate contracts lasting a total of 35 months, 2 days.

That’s been happening since the 80s, at Apple and many, many other companies both low and high tech.

 

[Winni]

"And that weighs heavy on people's minds, I think."

Maybe that guy should get some real-life responsibilities like a family, then he wouldn't have to "think" - he would know.

 

[cocky jeremy]

First, today, nobody is forcing it. It should be forced, but it isn't.

Second, it wouldn't be forcing "an employer," it would be forcing "all employers." In other words, they'd all be on equal footing.

Third, the same reason we force employers to do anything good. Same reason we have wage and hours regulations, health and safety regulations, anti-discrimination regulations, job-protected medical leave, etc. The net benefits to the country (the residents collectively, or society) of having those requirements far exceeds their cost.

You work. You get paid. NO employer should be forced to pay you because you you decide to have a kid. That's idiotic.
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Forced? It's called a benefit and used to attract talent in a very competitive environment.

If the thought of Apple offering a benefit makes you unhappy, then please don't apply to Apple for employment.

Simple.

I'm talking about people that want that to be required. It's the most idiotic thing I've ever heard of. How entitled can you be? I decide on my own to do something, so my employer should pay me to not show up or do any work. WTF?

 

[audiophilosophy]

There's no such thing as a free lunch. Someone has to pay (somewhere) when certain people get slack.

 

[Apple2GS]

If you value the company you work for more so than your own family, by all means. Why are you so concerned with others who want to prioritize his/her family? Are you jealous?
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That is fine, take the 16+ weeks off, but don't complain that your salary is lower then the person who worked overtime to cover for you. Very spoiled and entitled people in the new generation. That is good for me, more high paying jobs. Thanks!