Matthews, N.C. – Harris Teeter announced today the retailer will offer a paid parental leave benefit to all full-time associates, effective immediately.

The benefit provides parents four weeks of paid parental leave within the first 12 months after a birth or adoption of a child.

“Family is at the core of our business as our friendly associates serve millions of families every day with our fresh, high-quality product,” said Ted Harrington, vice president of Human Resources. “Harris Teeter is committed to enriching the lives of our associates and their families, and we are proud to offer this new policy to demonstrate our support for working families.”

The birth or adoption of a child is an exciting time for any family, and Harris Teeter is thrilled to offer associates the much-needed time off to bond with their child. This benefit adds to Harris Teeter’s comprehensive compensation and benefit program, which includes competitive health care, life insurance, paid time off, education assistance and profit-sharing benefits.

"I’m incredibly proud to work for a company that is a champion for parents and families,” said LeAnn Sek, Harris Teeter’s Women Empowerment Group (WEG) co-chair and district manager. "When surveyed, our valued associates ranked Paid Parental Leave as the number one way Harris Teeter could better support parents throughout the organization so I’m thrilled to see the policy be put into place.”