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52.
Your Mother Was Pro-Life
Dave Thomas, the founder and senior chairman of
Wendy's International, Inc., is a leading advocate of
corporate adoption benefits. According to John
Nesbitt's
Trendletter,
Wendy's pays up to $4
,000
to
employees who adopt healthy children and
$6,000
if
a child has special needs. Adoptive parents can take
off as much as six weeks in paid time. Other
companies are following Dave Thomas' lead: American
Express, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Aetna Life and Casualty
Company. May their tribe increase.
Said Thomas in a recent interview, "My message is
to ask corporate America to put in adoption benefits;
we need to encourage people to adopt." Thomas'
publisher, GT Putnum's Sons, released this statement:
"Never knowing his birthparents, Thomas lost his
adoptive mother and was raised by a stern, working–
class adoptive father. " Dave Thomas was asked by
former President Bush to be spokesman for "Adoption
Works for Everyone."
Times are changing. In the next fiscal year, the
Federal government will award
$20
million in bonuses
to 35 states where adoptions are on the increase. In
addition,
$5
million will go to promote adoptions across
state lines and adoptions of children with special
needs. The money comes from a 1997 law that
streamlines adoption procedures. The goal is to double
the annual adoption rate by the year
2002
and to
approximately
56,000
per year.
Additionally, a tax credit of up to
$5,000
per child
lets the taxpayer reduce income tax dollar-for-dollar
based on adoption expenses. Income exclusion
features of the current tax law let companies provide
employees with up to
$5,000
in adoption assistance,
without the employees having to report the help as
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