There is more than one way to start a family — and companies should be providing employees with support for each and every one of them.
Adoption and foster care are two alternative family planning options employers are increasingly bolstering support for. There are currently more than 400,000 children in foster care across 218,927 licensed foster homes in the United States, according to the most recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau. And although just 2% of Americans have actually adopted, interest is high: more than a third of U.S. families have considered it.
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Currently, less than half of employers offer financial reimbursement for adoption and foster care, and just 45% offer paid leave, according to a survey by the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption and RTI International. As employers look to recruit and retain employees and consider their benefits plans for 2022, foster care and adoption-focused benefits should be taking center stage.
“If you're providing benefits to families that are formed at birth, there is a sense of equity that families that are formed from adoption [or foster care] should have some of the similar kinds of benefits,” says Rita Soronen, president and CEO of the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption.
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Of companies who offer adoption and foster care benefits, financial reimbursement is most common, with employers offering an average of $10,961 per child, up 7.9% from 2020, according to data from The Dave Thomas Foundation. The foundation ranked the top 10 companies with the most comprehensive adoption and foster care benefits for families:
