In August 2018, we welcomed Medibank parents to Circle In. Our new tailored portal now allows all Medibank parents to access online masterclasses, resources, real stories and much more. Our two launch partners, Medibank Private and L’Oreal, offer 14 weeks of paid parental leave to all new parents regardless of whether they are the primary or secondary carers. Medibank was named Australia’s best workplace for dads in 2018! Circle In’s Staying In Touch program encourages all parents to utilise parental leave and access resources. By sharing stories of men who have taken parental leave and also providing a forum for parents to communicate with one another, it aims to “normalise working dads’.
“A policy by itself will not create the change you need,” says Medibank’s group executive people and culture, Kylie Bishop.
“It’s about cultural change and Circle In is critical to that,” Ms Bishop says. "Father of three Ray Lui, the head of group planning and reporting at Medibank, plans to take 14 weeks of parental leave in November 2018 to help care for his youngest child, who is now 11 months old. (At Medibank leave can be accessed any time in the first two years of a child’s life.)
“You can feel quite removed from the organisation during the time that you are away,” Mr Lui said.
“Similarly for me, as a manager I have had the same experience from the other side. Trying to keep in touch with mothers who have had children can be challenging, especially during the day when they are busy managing their kids, it is always hard to find time to connect with them and make sure they are across what been happening in the team. I can see a massive benefit of this for new parents.” We love that like us, Medibank believe that raising a family and having a career should not be mutually exclusive. Congratulations to Medibank for your commitment and leadership towards working parents.