Companies across America are trimming the fat from employee benefits, citing AI and rising costs as their alibis. A Texas tech firm has suspended its 401(k) match program, while Deloitte is cutting parental leave and family planning reimbursements. Zoom has reduced its parental leave by four weeks.

Professor Joan C. Williams points out that these cuts are discriminatory, affecting lower-level workers more harshly than those in client-facing roles. The core issue lies in the increasing costs of healthcare plans, which have surged by an average of 6.5% since 2010, according to Mercer.

The US stands alone as one of the few countries without a federal paid maternal leave policy, highlighting the need for a more comprehensive social support system. Williams advocates for a shift towards nationalised policies that ensure better conditions and rights for employees.

Despite these cuts, some companies like Zoom are only dialling back generous policies to merely ‘generous,’ making 18 weeks of paid maternity leave stand out in the US. Research shows that such measures can harm a company's bottom line by diminishing employee quality of life.