At Morgan Stanley, pregnant employees in Mumbai and Bangalore can expense cab rides to and from work in their last trimester, avoiding India’s notoriously overcrowded buses and trains. “We found a lot of women used to leave in that phase simply because it is so difficult to travel in public transport in those months,” said Rajat Mathur, Head of Human Resources for India.
Morgan Stanley also provides a gradual return to work for women coming back from maternity leave, coaching for expectant and new parents, and mentoring. It also offers new dads up to 16 weeks of leave, Mathur said. Indian law currently provides 15 days of paternity leave to government employees, but there aren’t any mandatory minimums for the private sector.