Netflix stirred envy in sleep-deprived parents nationwide by saying it will give its employees up to a year of paid leave following the birth or adoption of a child. But outside of hypercompetitive Silicon Valley, don’t hold your breath for your boss to match it.

However, more companies are thinking about offering at least some paid time off, which is mandated in almost all other countries but not in the U.S.

“It’s not just a nice thing to do, it has a business payoff as well,” said Carol Sladek, a partner with the benefits consultant Aon Hewitt.

Most U.S. employers offer some sort of paid, short-term disability leave – usually six or eight weeks – for women who give birth. Additional paid benefits are sparse.

Only 21 percent of employers offer a paid maternity benefit beyond that disability leave, according to a recent survey from the Society for Human Resource Management. Only 17 percent provide any paid paternity leave for fathers or parents who adopt. If a company does offer paid leave, it’s usually about 12 weeks, or nothing close to what Netflix plans.

Netflix’s move, announced Tuesday, set a new standard even among Silicon Valley’s famously generous companies.

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“This is an extremely generous benefit, and while it’s fantastic for the women who work there, I don’t know how feasible it is going to be for the majority of industries to do something to this extent,” said Alina Salganicoff, vice president and director of women’s health policy for Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonprofit that researches health care issues.

Benefits experts say a combination of factors often prompt companies to offer a benefit that generous. First, the company has to be financially sound enough to afford it. It also has to have a workforce young enough to use it. And it needs to see an advantage in attracting and keeping talented workers.

That’s particularly the case in Silicon Valley, where technology companies attract younger workers who aren’t afraid to leave an employer for better benefits elsewhere, noted Bruce Elliott, manager of compensation and benefits for the Society for Human Resources Management.

Google, for instance, offers 18 weeks of paid maternity leave.


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