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Career Perks and Adoption
Are You Entitled to Employer-provided Adoption Benefits?
A growing number of employers offer benefits to adoptive parents. In 1990, a survey by Hewitt Associates found that only 12 percent of employers surveyed offered some kind of adoption benefits; by 1995, the 
proportion had climbed to 23 percent. In the 2004 Hewitt survey of 936 major U.S. employers, the percentage grew to 39 percent, with an average maximum reimbursement of $3,879 for adoption expenses.
Employers that offer adoption benefits cite various advantages for their companies, including maintenance of productivity, retention of good employees, a positive public image and equity in benefits for all employees.
What Types of Benefits Do Employers Offer?
Employer-sponsored adoption benefits take many forms. Typically, adoption benefits mirror benefits available to new biological parents. Adoption benefits fall into three general categories: - Information resources
- Financial assistance
- Parental leave policies
Employers may offer one or more of these types of benefits during a single adoption.
Information Resources
Resources made available to employees may include referrals to licensed adoption agencies, support groups and organizations; access to an adoption specialist to answer questions about the process; and help with special situations, such as a special needs adoption. Many employers that offer this type of benefit contract with a human resources consulting firm to provide these services to employees. Financial Assistance
