Biglaw Perk Watch: WilmerHale and O'Melveny & Myers to 18 Weeks

A few more firms have joined the 18 Week Club. New and improved parental leave policies, from WilmerHale and O’Melveny & Myers, appear after the jump.
We admit we can be a little idiosyncratic in terms of which firms’ announcements we highlight. For more comprehensive information, check out Justin Bernold’s handy-dandy, continually updated tables of maternity leave and paternity leave policies at different firms.


WILMERHALE — MEMORANDUM — PARENTAL LEAVE
Sent: Tuesday, March 25, 2008 10:31 AM
To: WH All Lawyers US
Subject: Parental Leave Announcement
We are pleased to announce an increase in the amount of paid parental leave being offered to eligible lawyers in our US offices under WilmerHale’s work/life balance policies. Lawyers at the firm who are serving as primary caregivers (i.e., the sole caregiver at home) may now take 18 consecutive weeks of paid leave following the birth or adoption of a child, provided that the leave is taken within one year of the birth or adoption. Lawyers who are serving as secondary caregivers (i.e., at home with a spouse or partner) may now take four consecutive weeks of paid leave, provided that the leave is taken at or near the time of the child’s birth or adoption.
These increases in paid parental leave reflect the firm’s commitment to assisting our lawyers in pursuing demanding legal careers while maintaining rewarding personal lives. The revised policies also reflect the firm’s continued gender neutral approach to parental leave and its belief that our work/life balance policies must acknowledge the important role that fathers and mothers play in parenting.
These new benefits are effective retroactively to January 1, 2008 and will apply to anyone who was on paid parental leave as of that date. Details on the new policies will be distributed shortly.
O’MELVENY & MYERS — MEMORANDUM — PARENTAL LEAVE POLICY
[From a tipster: “The news came in a US-wide voicemail last week, and was memorialized on the firm’s intranet.”]
O’Melveny Upgrades Parental Leave Policy
(03/21/2008)
O’Melveny is pleased to announce that it has upgraded its parental leave policy, in keeping with the Firm’s commitment to providing a workplace that supports lawyers both in terms of their professional development and work/life balance and effectiveness.
The Firm has added six weeks of “primary caregiver leave” to its existing parental leave policy. Birth mothers who are primary caregivers will now receive a total of 18 weeks paid leave following the birth of a child. Fathers and non-birth parents who are primary caregivers will now receive a total of 10 weeks of paid leave.
Adoptive parents now have eight weeks of adoption leave, in addition to the existing four weeks of parental leave. Also, adoptive parents are now eligible for the added six weeks of “primary caregiver leave.” Accordingly, adoptive parents who are primary caregivers will now receive a total of 18 weeks of paid leave for the adoption of a child.
The Firm also recognizes that transitioning back to work after the birth or adoption of a child sometimes can be challenging. To ease this transition, associates and counsel now have the option to return to work on a reduced workload (at a pace of 75 percent or greater), without prior approval, for a period of six months.

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