“All new parents, regardless of gender, sexual orientation or family type, should have the time to bond with their children and adjust to their changed family life without feeling the pressures that could previously sometimes come with a career gap. By intentionally building the space for our people’s personal life experiences and normalising this leave for all new parents, I hope we show our people that the health and wellbeing of their family matters.”
Sanofi is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment where our people feel supported and able to bring their best selves to work.
Our diversity and inclusion (D&I) approach is fully integrated with our people strategy and our commitment to society, where we want to make an impact in the world through who we are, what we do, and the way we do it.
Our diversity edge will help us get there because, for us:
We recognise that families come in all shapes and sizes and we are dedicated to creating a workplace that is inclusive and supportive of all family configurations. We understand that having a career and being a carer can coexist, and it is part of the reason Sanofi Australia has raised its hand to become certified as a Family Inclusive Workplace.
Proudly, the effort is being led by our Gender Equity Working Group and is, yet another example of the difference our Diversity & Inclusion employee groups can, and do, make.
Being a part of the Family Inclusive Workplace program will support our efforts to bring together and formalise the various programs available today and help us identify areas we need to focus on for tomorrow in line with Australia’s new National Work + Family Standards.
Our integrated D&I strategy is driven by the overarching objective of making a positive impact on our workforce, our workplace, and our communities.
In line with this, from January 1, 2022, we will grant 14 weeks paid parental leave to any Sanofi employee welcoming a new child, due to childbirth, adoption, or surrogacy, irrespective of gender or sexual orientation. From this date we will also:
We have seen first-hand the concrete and positive impact such policies can have in the life events of employees becoming parents.
The benefit of an extensive parental leave support program, incorporating paid leave, childcare allowance, ongoing superannuation, and long service leave accruals and more) will give our employees the freedom to determine the childcare arrangements that work best for them as a family and provide quality time to better bond together. We see this as an important step forward for driving equality in the workplace and greater choices beyond.
And because diversity and inclusion are multi-faceted topics, providing the same rights and opportunities to all employees will equally contribute towards helping managers who make decisions on hiring, promoting, and developing talents, not to apply bias about parental leave only being taken by women. Another step forward to supporting our ambitions of gender balance.
Our approach to parental leave is concrete proof point of our determination to make our D&I ambitions a reality.
“It was a blessing that I could get paid parental leave that could be taken when it suited our family needs. Thanks to Sanofi, I feel I have bonded with my children in a way that wouldn’t have been possible without that extra time off”. ~ Ron Lane, Supply Chain.
“Sanofi has been an amazing career-life journey partner. Since returning from parental leave the company has offered me an enriching and challenging new role. I am given the flexibility to look after my little boy while working with a group of talented, focused and driven people across four continents.” ~ Christine Guerru, Head of eCommerce, Sanofi Consumer Healthcare
Linda Matthews, Reward & Performance Lead, JPAC
“In 2020, during COVID my father was told that he had terminal kidney cancer. Dad had lived alone for several years and for all intents and purposes was as independent as you can be at 81 years of age.
A few days before Christmas 2020, it became apparent that Dad would need to leave his beloved home that had been in his family for over 100 years and move into palliative care.
Sanofi gave me the freedom to work flexibly, and for 3 months, I worked by Dad’s side in the palliative care ward. I was able to support Dad during an incredibly challenging time and it gave me the peace of mind to know that I was still able to meet my work goals, care for Dad and continue to earn an income.
There was never a typical working day, it all depended on what was on my work agenda and how Dad was feeling, I had the freedom to plan each day as it came. Some days, I would work from home in the morning and head over to spend time with Dad for the afternoon. Other days, I would arrive early morning to help him get set up for the day, particularly if I knew he had had a tough night.
Dad told me on a few occasions how much he appreciated having me with him during his illness, he was also thrilled to be able to see what I did on a day-to-day basis, listening to me on the phone or on a zoom call took his mind of his pain and personal circumstances.
I was privileged to be by Dads side when he passed away, and I will forever be grateful to the team at Sanofi for their thought and consideration in allowing me to genuinely employee a flexible work approach at such an important and emotional time.”
“All new parents, regardless of gender, sexual orientation or family type, should have the time to bond with their children and adjust to their changed family life without feeling the pressures that could previously sometimes come with a career gap. By intentionally building the space for our people’s personal life experiences and normalising this leave for all new parents, I hope we show our people that the health and wellbeing of their family matters.”
Parents At Work acknowledge and pay respect to the past, present and future Traditional Custodians and Elders of this nation and the continuation of cultural, spiritual and educational practices of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
