{"id":271505,"date":"2023-02-15T13:05:34","date_gmt":"2023-02-15T18:05:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.oviahealth.com\/?p=271505"},"modified":"2023-02-15T16:05:23","modified_gmt":"2023-02-15T21:05:23","slug":"dei-birth-equity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.oviahealth.com\/blog\/dei-birth-equity\/","title":{"rendered":"Survey shows how employers and payers can improve DEI and birth equity"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

During Black History Month, we\u2019re reminded that there\u2019s so much more we can do to strengthen diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and improve birth equity. But the task can feel overwhelming \u2014 it\u2019s hard to know where to begin, or what will really make an impact. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s one reason we checked in with nearly 1,500 Ovia members in our Future of Family Friendly Benefits<\/a> survey to get an insider\u2019s view on the state of DEI for working parents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What employees say about DEI<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

When we asked Ovia members who were working parents to grade how well their employers\u2019 benefits support DEI, we quickly learned that people are not impressed. On average, our respondents gave their employers a C on DEI.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When we broke the data down, we found that Black respondents were 6 percent more likely to give their employers a failing grade (a D or an F) on being diverse, equitable, and inclusive in their benefits programs. Clearly, something needs to change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The benefits that matter most for DEI and birth equity  <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

To better understand what companies can do to improve their DEI efforts and support Black women at work, we asked employees to rank their most important benefits. Then we compared the priorities between groups and found a lot of similarities, and one key difference. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Among Black women, the five most important benefits were:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. Childcare<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Flexible scheduling<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Leave quality<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. Digital fertility and maternal health tools<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. Family-friendly culture<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Their white counterparts ranked their most important benefits this way:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    1. Leave quality<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    2. Flexible Scheduling<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    3. Childcare<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    4. Family-friendly culture<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    5. Easy-to-understand benefits<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

      One difference especially stands out \u2014 Black women ranked digital fertility and maternal health tools in their top-five most important benefits. To make sense of the difference, we need to consider the deep disparities in birth outcomes. In the U.S., Black women are three to four times more likely to die a pregnancy-related death compared to white women. They\u2019re 60 percent more likely to develop life-threatening pregnancy complications, such as preeclampsia. Black mothers are seeking access to tools to support their health.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Black women underscored the point when we asked if adding a personalized health program to improve birth equity and Black maternal health was an important addition for 2023 \u2014 they were 104% more likely to say yes compared to white respondents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Our respondents also told us that they need more support for their mental wellbeing, with Black women emphasizing the importance of mental health for focus and performance at work. We found that:<\/p>\n\n\n\n