Advocated for Adoption Benefits from my employer! And GOT them!

by Kelli George
(Portland, Oregon)

I work for a very large company who did not have adoption benefits. However, my very large company had recently purchased another somewhat large company who had a $9000 financial assistance program for adoptive families, and worked with another company who had a $5000 financial assistance program for adoptive families. I knew our main competitor just across town offered a $5000 adoption benefit to employees as well. I researched other companies (using mainly the Dave Thomas foundation website for resources) and read other's proposals for adoption benefits and then created my own.

It took about 1 1/2 years and at first I was instantly shot down, but eventually they added a $7500 financial benefit for adoptive families!

I had proposed $9000 (to match the benefit of the other company) but would have been happy with $3000! When I sent it to the benefits and Compensation director, she praised it's thorougness and clarity, and stated "you've saved us a lot of work!". 1 1/2 years later, an announcement came out that this benefit was being added!

Between this benefit and the federal adoption tax credit, the first adoption only cost me a few thousand dollars in the end.