Netflix now offers ‘unlimited’ paid maternity and paternity leave for the first year

Rather than join the ranks of tech companies offering to freeze women’s eggs in efforts to stave off pregnancy, Netflix just launched extended maternity and paternity leave for its workers.

The policy will apply to the first year that a child is born or adopted. In a statement, the company said:

“We want employees to have the flexibility and confidence to balance the needs of their growing families without worrying about work or finances. Parents can return part-time, full-time, or return and then go back out as needed. We’ll just keep paying them normally, eliminating the headache of switching to state or disability pay. Each employee gets to figure out what’s best for them and their family, and then works with their managers for coverage during their absences.”

The new initiative seems a little too good to be true, but top tech companies do tend to offer some pretty competitive allowances for parents. Plus, Netflix is hot on the rise. Its most recent earnings statement showed quarterly revenue of $1.64 billion, shooting the company’s stock up 10 percent in after-hours trading.

So an aggressive parental leave offering for a company wanting to attract fresh talent is not totally surprising. If anything, it’s a reflection of Netflix’s healthy growth.