Skip is enhancing its fertility and mental-health coverage, as well as its focus on menopause, to help employees stay engaged and feel supported throughout their careers, says Cailey Brown, the employer’s head of human resources.
The delivery service has expanded its fertility coverage from drugs only to include fertility treatment coverage with a $20,000 lifetime maximum. It also doubled its mental-health coverage maximums from $500 to $1,000 for its comprehensive plan and from $1,000 to $2,000 for its enhanced plan.
Read: 2025 Toronto Benefits Summit: Fertility coverage a fast-growing benefit but gaps remain
This work began in 2024, when the company identified an urgent need to evolve its parental leave offering to ensure it was inclusive and competitive, notes Brown. Candidates had mentioned there was a gap in their offerings around parental leave and it was deterring some from joining the organization, so the company reacted quickly and recognized it needed to step up in these areas.
“Once we addressed parental leave that naturally extended the conversation to fertility, and later, perimenopause and menopause. This allowed us to build a more comprehensive life-stage focused benefits program that reflects what employees have told us through our engagement surveys and feedback from leaders.”
The new coverage also includes bone density scans for employees dealing with perimenopause or menopause to provide targeted mid-career support.
“I think menopause is an area people still don’t talk about enough, and [it’s underrepresented] in benefits [plan] design,” says Brown. “What’s really special at Skip is we have a 70 per cent female leadership team, so we do talk about it often. We know [it’s an important] life stage. So we look for practical ways of supporting women in our organization, whether that’s through bone density scans or making sure our drug coverage does cover hormone therapy.”
When it comes to attraction and retention, Brown believes these new offerings are a game changer because these are such critical moments in people’s lives. “Whether you’re starting a family, dealing with mental-health challenges or going into menopause, these are moments where it really matters how you show up at work and feel confident and supported. Working for an organization that supports you through all of those life stages would [likely] make you feel more engaged and more excited about work.”
For employers that are looking to evolve their benefits, she notes taking a blanket approach might cause them to spend money in the wrong places. Assessing where people are at within the organization and what’s really important to them is the best way to make sure the company is investing money in the right places.
Read: 2023 Healthy Outcomes Conference: Why Hydro Ottawa’s wellness program isn’t one size fits all