pecting Better: A Look at Parental Leave Programs

By Joanna DeChellis, Editor

WHEN TJ GARRISH, Executive

Chef of L’Hirondelle Club of Ruxton (Towson, Md.), learned his fiancé was pregnant, he began to prepare for the arrival of their new addition. He planned to take at least a week o after she was born, but he could take up to two weeks per the club’s paternity leave program.

When Garrish’s daughter, McKenzie (see photo, above), was born two months premature, he faced a daunting set of unexpected challenges. Fortunately, L’Hirondelle was supportive, providing him the time and flexibility he needed to navigate those early days.

“I was able to bounce back and forth between the hospital and the club daily,” says Garrish. “When she finally came home, I could still take a week o to be with my family. A lot of the credit goes to my team, who was able to step up in my absence and fill in any gaps.”

L’Hirondelle continues to support Garrish—but not all employees in the club industry are as fortunate.

A Troubling Trend

According to a report by the National Partnership for Women & Families, only 25% of workers in the United States have access to paid family leave through their employer.¹ According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, only 10% of workers in the accommodation and foodservice industry have access to paid family leave benefits.²

“Our industry is already tough on hours and lacks flexibility,” says Eduardo Castillo, CEC, Executive Chef of San Antonio (Texas) Country Club. “Parental leave can be expensive, but it provides an avenue for clubs to maintain sta and provide an environment that is welcoming and receptive of families.”

SACC o ers two weeks of paid time o (PTO) after one year of employment at the club. That number inflates to six weeks after 10 years. But that’s not ideal for younger parents without much tenure.

“We had a new employee have a baby in his first year, and he had no PTO to cover time o ,” says Castillo. “Our employees generously decided to donate some of their own PTO, but he still had to take a pay hit.”

Castillo is working with SACC to find more and better ways to support new families and hourly employees during important life events such as the arrival of a new child.

“PTO is a good start, but it usually has tight limitations,” he says. “We need more support and guidance from club management to improve parental leave programs. Clubs could explore creating funds like scholarships or holiday bonuses to support parental leave for all employees. But that starts by having those conversations with management and the board.”

Another challenge facing club chefs is the long and irregular hours. Many employees work late into the evening or early in the morning, making it difficult to find childcare.

“Most SACC employees rely on family to help them care for a new baby, or they choose a daycare,” says Castillo. “Unfortunately, many childcare programs are expensive and often completely out of reach due to hours or cost. We try to explore each case as unique and find a solution that may include changing schedules, roles or expectations.”

OPPORTUNITY FOR CROSS-TRAINING

When a leadership-level employee takes leave, it creates a temporary gap that needs to be filled. One e ective solution is to cross-train other sta members to take on those responsibilities during their absence.

“Instead of looking at parental leaves as a challenge to overcome, we must look at it as an opportunity for employees to take on new tasks and responsibilities,” says Castillo. “When a manager is gone for an extended period, other employees can grow into that supervisory or senior role. A junior sous or chef de partie can take some or all of the responsibility of the executive chef who is out. This can also be an opportunity to cross-train employees.”

Cross-training gives employees valuable experience and skills and can create a more flexible and resilient workforce, allowing the club to better adapt to unexpected absences or changes in sta ng needs.

“You usually have several months to plan,” says Cory Kuhn, CCM, Clubhouse Manager of Glendora (Calif.) Country Club. “Before the birth of each of my three children, I took the initiative to train my team to cover my responsibilities in my absence.”

When Kuhn’s first child was born, he was a banquet manager. He trained his banquet captain for several months on scheduling, setting up for events and more. “It was great because when I came back, my captain was proficient at my position, and we were both given promotions,” says Kuhn.

For each subsequent child, Kuhn followed a similar plan. “This has been a great way to train and delegate tasks to other aspiring managers who might not have had the reason or direction to do so if it had not been for me leaving temporarily,” he says. “The experience also provides a valuable lesson in delegation and letting your team do the work without being micromanaged.”

While each club takes a di erent approach to parental leave, the prevailing theme distills down to this: A supportive work environment values and prioritizes the needs of its employees and their families.

“We’ve worked hard to change how we help our team balance work and family priorities,” says Garrish. “My GM has been incredibly supportive of this process, too. When we’re most busy in the summer, we work five days a week. But in the winter, when we’re slower, we work four days a week and always try to give at least one weekend day o .

“If a member of my team has unused vacation at the end of the year, I’ll make them take time o ,” he continues. “I want my team to spend time with their families, have hobbies and a life outside the kitchen. Those things are important and help us serve our membership better.” C+RC

Editorial Note: Despite e orts to interview a wider variety of sources for this story, including female chefs and managers, all declined to participate.