Publix grocery store chain to start offering paid parental leave

Publix grocery stores will start to offer paid parental leave to employees who are new parents, Florida Politics reported. 

The Florida-based company announced on Wednesday that starting in 2022, full-time and part-time employees are eligible to take time off during the first year of the birth or adoption of a child. 

“Publix is committed to being a great place to work, and we frequently review our benefits to continually offer a comprehensive package to our associates,” Publix spokesperson Maria Brous told Florida Politics in an emailed statement. 

The announcement comes as U.S.-based retailers face widespread worker shortages, with some businesses offering new benefits to attract or retain workers, The Associated Press reported. 

For example, St. Louis-based supermarket chain Schnucks recently rewarded its employees with a one-time retention bonus worth $600. 

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) called out grocery chains last week for putting company profits over customers, as grocer profits have risen along with grocery prices during the pandemic.

Publix, a privately held company, employs 225,000 workers at nearly 1,300 stores in seven southern U.S. states, the AP noted.

Many Democrats had hoped to include mandatory paid parental leave in a sprawling social and climate spending package; however, it was removed from a slimmed-down version of the bill amid opposition from Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.). 

The U.S. is among the only industrialized nations without a national paid leave policy, though a handful of states have programs funded by payroll taxes.