Benefits

Supporting your well-being

Our mission is to help people fulfill their potential through health, and that starts with you. Count on Abbott to support you in your career and throughout the moments that matter most to you and your family. From health care, retirement, and education benefits to wellness programs, workplace flexibility, and much more, Abbott offers the security you need for all the important moments of your life.*

Healthcare

Our medical options provide employees and their eligible family members, including domestic partners, with extensive coverage and protection against major medical expenses. Coverage is available from the first day of employment.

All of the options cover preventive care, inpatient and outpatient care, routine office visits, prescription drugs, physical therapy, home healthcare, mental health/substance abuse treatment and hospice care. In addition, our medical options offer numerous programs and services that can help employees improve and maintain their health, better manage illnesses and receive better value for their healthcare dollars.

Our dental plan helps employees pay for the costs of dental care for themselves and their eligible family members. Coverage is available from the first day of employment.

Participants may take advantage of reduced out-of-pocket costs when they use dentists in a nationwide network of participating providers. Our dental plan pays for preventive, restorative and surgical services, as well as orthodontia, at varying levels of coverage.

With our vision care plan, we offer employees an affordable way to maintain eye health and receive discounts on eyewear. Coverage is available from the first day of employment.

Our flexible spending accounts (FSAs) give employees the opportunity to set aside money on a pre-tax basis for eligible out-of-pocket healthcare expenses and dependent care expenses. Coverage is available from the first day of employment.

Employees can contribute up to the annual IRS maximum per year for reimbursement for eligible out-of-pockets healthcare expenses (such as co-payments for office visits, prescription drugs, contact lenses, eyeglasses, orthodontia and hearing aids) through the healthcare FSA.

Additionally, employees can set aside up to $5,000 per year for reimbursement of eligible childcare or elder care expenses through the dependent care FSA.

Our health savings account (HSA) can be used to pay for eligible healthcare and prescription drug expenses. Employees can make pre-tax contributions to the HSA, up to the annual IRS maximum. Abbott also contributes to the account annually ($200 employee-only/$400 family).

Employees can use the account to pay the annual deductible and coinsurance or continue to grow the savings account to use in retirement.

Our wellness programs and resources are designed to promote overall health and well-being:

Seminars on stress and anxiety, personal and work relationships, meditation and mindfulness, healthy habits, and balancing work and family needs
Programs to encourage being physically active, eating healthier, managing health conditions, getting quality sleep, and becoming more resilient
On-site screenings and immunizations at some locations to promote prevention and early detection
On-site fitness centers at some locations that offer professionally supervised programs, including aerobics classes and fitness assessment.
Health fairs, fitness events, steps challenges, and exercise competitions

Professional development

We provide development and advancement opportunities that allow our employees to achieve their full potential and have their best careers.

Our employees can build new skills and unlock their full potential with the development opportunities available at Abbott — such as mentoring, leadership training, personalized career development tools and a variety of global training resources including on-demand, online, and in-person training. Content includes topics across leadership development, business and management skills, digital transformation, personal development, and technology.

We identify high-potential employees early in their careers and offer training that’s specific to their roles and areas of the business. Employees who participate in these programs expand their internal networks as they meet colleagues from different parts of the company and work with peers on challenging business projects that span the company.

Our Global Development Week encourages employees to explore the range of resources available to help them unlock their full potential. Nearly 200 Abbott leaders serve as instructors, facilitating and engaging employees and sharing their own development journeys.

Retirement benefits

We are proud to offer the benefits and programs that help our employees build long-term financial strength and security for them and their families. Our Abbott Stock Retirement Plan, our 401(k), offers employees the convenience of automatic savings through payroll deductions and the opportunity for tax advantages through before-tax, after-tax, and Roth 401(k) contributions. Employees may enroll immediately after joining Abbott and are vested in any company contributions after two years of service.

Abbott’s Freedom 2 Save (F2S) program addresses our belief that employees shouldn’t have to choose between paying off student loans and saving for retirement. Under the plan, employees who are currently repaying a student loan, and these payments equal at least two percent of their eligible pay, will receive a five percent company match deposited into their Abbott Stock Retirement Plan (SRP) account without having to make contributions to the SRP. If you are enrolled in F2S and making your own contributions to the SRP, you will only receive the F2S matching contribution. All employees who are eligible to participate in the SRP are eligible to enroll in F2S on their first day of employment.

Incentive programs

We believe in rewarding employees for their contributions to the company’s financial success. We offer various incentive programs for all levels of employees.

Insurance

We offer basic life and accidental death insurance at no cost to employees. Employees also may purchase supplemental and dependent life insurance.

We pay the entire cost of this benefit for employees traveling on Abbott business anywhere in the world.

Our long-term care insurance program provides employees, retirees and their eligible family members with access to extended care when a covered individual has an on-going illness or disability and cannot care for him or herself. Participants pay the full cost of this insurance.

Leaves of absence

Medical leave management programs help ensure that employees receive appropriate medical and rehabilitative care to facilitate their successful return to work whenever possible.

We provide employees with paid time off to care for themselves and eligible family members when they cannot work due to injury or illness. Benefits vary for hourly and salaried employees, and some states based on local or state laws.

We understand it’s important for parents to care for and spend time with their new child. That’s why we offer parental leave. Eligible birth parents, adoptive parents, foster parents and parents who have a child legally pre-placed with them for adoption can take up to eight weeks (i.e., up to 320 work hours or an equivalent part-time workweek) paid time off following the birth, legal adoption, legal pre-placement for adoption or legal foster placement of a child. Parental leave may be used in one-week increments, up to one year from the date of birth, legal adoption. Legal pre-placement for adoption or legal foster placement of a new child.

Sometimes it’s necessary for an employee to take time off from work, either due to a serious illness (when sick pay benefits have been exhausted) or to care for a newborn or a parent, spouse or child who becomes seriously ill. To help meet these needs, the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) of 1993 provides up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave in a 12-month period, if eligible, to care for your family or yourself for specified family and/or medical conditions.

Our Long-Term Disability Plan is designed to provide continuing income for employees who are unable to work due to illness or injury. Under this plan, eligible employees who are scheduled to work at least 20 hours per week and who are absent from work as a result of a qualifying illness or injury for more than six months may receive a salary-based monthly disability benefit.

Vacations and holidays

We realize that everyone needs time to relax and recharge. So, we offer our employees generous vacation time — three weeks per year for new employees and 10 paid holidays annually. (Vacation time may be prorated in the first year, based on date of hire. And specific holiday schedules vary depending on local practices.)

Work life programs

We reimburse up to $20,000 for eligible expenses related to the successful legal adoption of a child.

This benefit allows employees who commute by public transit or van-pool to pay for transit expenses with money deducted from their paycheck before federal, state and local taxes are applied. By participating in this program, employees can reduce their commuting expenses and taxable income, and increase their spendable income.

The EAP is a free, confidential program that provides assistance and support to help manage all of life’s complexities and easy access to therapy on a range of personal concerns.

The EAP offers a range of services including assessment and coordination for the right kind of care, including therapy, online wellness exercises, coaching, specialized care for substance use disorders and more. EAP professionals also provide consultation to managers and supervisors, crisis intervention and educational/training sessions.

Our investment in family care is one part of our commitment to helping employees manage and integrate their personal and professions lives. Abbott provides employees with:

Care.com premium membership for finding and managing care for children, seniors, pets, and the home including 24/7 live access to free Care Specialist offering one-on-one personalized support
Preferred placement and fee discounts with national and regional childcare providers
Free breastmilk delivery service for nursing Abbott employees traveling on business
Free virtual, on-demand tutoring services
Resources and support for parents of neurodiverse children
Education support including college advisory services
Elder care patient advocacy, care coordination and caregiving support services

Abbott provides eligible employees financial assistance to help with the cost of fostering a child placed by a state or state approved agency by providing a disbursement of $1,000 per household, per calendar year for a new formal foster care placement(s) in the employee’s home. Up to a maximum of five new formal foster care placement(s) per calendar year per household are eligible.

Offered through Abbott's Employee Assistance Program, this benefit offers free and confidential legal and financial consultations.

We provide ongoing opportunities and support for employees to learn and grow. Employees (including newly hired employees) with at least one year of full-time business experience can take advantage of our generous tuition assistance program. This program reimburses employees for business-relevant classes at 100 percent up to $7,000 per year for undergraduate classes and $10,000 per year for graduate classes.

Abbott values working together, face-to-face, and we care about providing flexibility for our employees. Because both are important, Abbott’s Flex Work policy is designed to provide flexible work options to employees while also acknowledging the distinct benefits of being at work together.

Disclosures

*The information contained in this section describes some of the benefits Abbott offers to U.S. employees working a schedule of 20 or more hours per week. These benefits may differ based on location and business unit.

Abbott reserves the right to change or end its benefits plans or programs at any time. The information provided in the Abbott Benefits section of this website is neither a summary of the plans or policies nor a description of their key features or details. In case of any conflict or question, the official plan documents or applicable policies, as amended from time to time, will govern.