Women’s Leadership Scholar & Karen Haight Huntsman Endowed Professor of Leadership, Huntsman School of Business, Utah State University.
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Research shows that companies that offer flexible and family-friendly policies and arrangements—including childcare—see higher employee satisfaction, increased employee retention, improved employee engagement, increased productivity and enhanced recruitment success. As UNICEF put it, “The business case is clear: Investing in family-friendly policies helps improve workforce productivity and a company’s ability to attract, motivate and retain employees.”
Over the past few years, I have talked about childcare with hundreds of business leaders whose concerns and insights indicate a range of awareness. Many see childcare as an “all or nothing” option. Some leaders still believe that if they begin any type of discussion about childcare with their employees, they will be locked into opening an on-site childcare facility. So they default to nothing and avoid the topic. However, I do not believe chronic avoidance serves any business well in 2022. In fact, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce believes that “childcare is a critical component of alleviating the worker shortage crisis.”
In reality, business leaders have a spectrum of employee childcare options. The following are 10 ideas for a U.S. audience, ranging from least to most resource intensive.
1. Have your human resource department collect and distribute childcare resources to employees, such as the availability of childcare nearby and applicable government subsidy eligibility. This could include state assistance programs, military childcare assistance, earned income tax credit and more.
2. Train your supervisors and managers to ask working parents—women and men—about their work-life challenges and then listen. Although this seems simple, avoiding the topic of childcare in general shows a lack of care and concern. Remember that the manager-employee relationship continues to be one of the most important elements in retaining talent.
3. Offer flexible schedules and remote work options to help working parents manage the work-life balance. For remote work, however, it is important that employees have training, particularly about how to telework most effectively. And remember that remote workers still need childcare support, as parents who work from home without having consistent, quality childcare are often less effective in their work.
4. Provide a flex spending account, such as a cafeteria-style benefits plan or a section 125 plan; this lets workers choose the benefits they want or need at any given time.
5. Subsidize childcare costs while employees use their arrangement of choice. According to one SHRM report, offering childcare subsidies has been linked to increased employee satisfaction and engagement.
6. Consider a childcare voucher system in which the employer contracts with a childcare center or provider outside the company for services for their workers. This could include full-time childcare or even special arrangements for part-time, backup or summer care.
7. Utilize a variety of federal tax incentives. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce provides an “Employer Guide to Childcare Assistance and Tax Credits” that has been helpful to companies all over the United States and beyond.
8. Work with a local childcare provider near your company to provide childcare slots for your employees’ children through subsidizing at least a portion of the cost.
9. Team up with organizations that assist in finding childcare in your area, creating customized childcare programs, customizing tuition support and even linking parents who want to self-organize care swaps. Like EAPs, employers can contract with companies that provide one-on-one services that focus on specific employee needs and concerns.
10. Offer on-site childcare. This is the most resource-heavy option, but more and more companies are finding this is necessary to support, retain and advance their employees. This benefit can make them the “employer of choice” in their local areas or states.
An “all or nothing” approach demonstrates a leadership team’s lack of knowledge, innovation and strategic thinking. As you can see, there are many options along the childcare support continuum. Yet, it is also important to note that, without help, quality childcare is unaffordable for most families. In addition to businesses implementing childcare policies and arrangements, business leaders can be involved in public policy solutions at the federal, state and local levels.
Childcare has become a crucial part of our social and economic infrastructure, and Covid-19 underscored the need for all companies—large and small—to be part of the solution. With the perfect storm raging upon us—pandemic, talent shortages, inflation, war and violence—employees need more help than ever before to thrive. Realizing that childcare solutions are not “all or nothing” and are part of a continuum is a start. All businesses can do something!
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