In my last entry I mentioned doing some research on adoption benefits that employers may offer. If you are planning on pursing adoption you should start your journey by calling your human resource department and see if they offer any. When you are speaking with them be sure to ask if the company offers any financial assistance to pay for the adoption process.
Many employers offer paid leave but if your company is not one of the companies that offer it but your company has more than 50 employees they are obligated under the Federal Family Medical Leave Act to give you up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave. During these 12 weeks you have a guarantee that your job will be there for you, your benefits will continue. You can use this 12 weeks this to travel to meet your new child, bond with your child or whatever it is that you need to do with your child.
If you start asking your company about it early enough on in the process you may be able to get your employer to consider changing their policy. You should start your process by writing your supervisor and cc your human resources manager and explain to them why you are asking for the assistance and/or leave. Note in your letter the maternity leave policy that your company offers and ask for consideration that they will provide you with adoption leave. I tried this and it did not work for me I ended up taking 2 weeks’ vacation time when we were placed with our sons but I had known that for a while. I could have taken the 12 weeks Federal Medical Leave Act but with us we just could not go 12 weeks without my paycheck so we went with just the 2 weeks. If the boys did not adjust to the small in home daycare we had chosen I would have taken the unpaid leave but luckily for us they did.
You can check out a list of some companies that do offer adoption leave by clicking here.