Food Lion Announces New Six-Week Paid Parental Leave Benefit

Food Lion announced today that beginning Jan. 1, 2020, the retailer will offer a paid parental leave benefit to all full-time associates.

With this benefit, associates of any gender may take six weeks of paid parental leave within the first 12 months of a child’s birth, adoption or other legal, custodial placements.

“Welcoming a new member into a family is an important and special time, and it’s important to us at Food Lion to offer this benefit to support well-being and balance in our associates’ personal and professional lives,” said Linda Johnson, Senior Vice President, Human Resources at Food Lion. “Food Lion is committed to being a diverse and inclusive organization that celebrates and nurtures our associates and their families in the towns and cities we serve. This is a benefit we are proud to offer and we look forward to it becoming available at the start of the new year.”

The paid parental leave benefit will be eligible to all full-time Food Lion associates with at least one year of continuous service with the company as of the date their child is born, adopted or placed with an associates’ family or the date the placement was finalized.

The new option will help eligible associates throughout the organization in important times of transition in their families. It adds to Food Lion’s comprehensive compensation and benefits program for associates, which includes competitive medical, dental, vision, life insurance and disability, paid time off, educational assistance and other benefit programs.

Food Lion, based in Salisbury, N.C., since 1957, has more than 1,000 stores and employs more than 63,000 associates in the following 10 Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic states: Delaware, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.

About Food Lion

Food Lion, based in Salisbury, N.C., since 1957, has more than 1,000 stores in 10 Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic states and employs more than 63,000 associates. By leveraging its longstanding heritage of low prices and convenient locations, Food Lion is working to own the easiest full shop grocery experience in the Southeast, anchored by a strong commitment to affordability, freshness and the communities it serves. Through Food Lion Feeds, the company has donated more than 500 million meals to individuals and families since 2014, and has committed to donate 1 billion more meals by 2025. Food Lion is a company of Ahold Delhaize USA, the U.S. division of Zaandam-based Royal Ahold Delhaize Group. For more information, visit www.foodlion.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190911005492/en/