Child Care Scare: Part 1 - How Employers Can Help
Parents, young children and employers in the US are facing a child care crisis. It’s too expensive for some parents; doesn’t pay enough for some employees of child care or there’s not enough of it. That means some parents are having to choose between work and home. This is the first of a three part look at the crisis and what we might do about it. Note: I wrote the original version of this story for Public Ed Works in July 2024, as part of a series of stories about an ambitious educational initiative in Guilford County, NC called “Ready for School, Ready for Life.” I have updated some of the figures to reflect changes as of September, 2024
60% of parents cite concerns about child care as a reason for leaving their jobs.
The Ready for School, Ready for Life initiative in Guilford County has brought together private foundations, nonprofits, the health department, educators, physicians, parents, and more than 100 community groups in a remarkable commitment to improve early childhood services in the county.
But employers also play a critical role in increasing the success of young parents and their children. A 2023 community survey found that just 7% of Greensboro employers offered paid parent or family leave or support for child care; employers said “family reasons” were a top reason for high turnover.
A group called Action Greensboro, a nonprofit supported by a coalition of eight foundations in the Greensboro area, aims to change that.
Their goal, through a project called “Future Ready Greensboro”: By February 2025, convince companies with a total of 50,000 employees to adopt a series of “Family Forward” policies and become the first “Family Forward NC certified community“ in the nation.
Employers get that designation, created by the NC Early Childhood Foundation (NCECF), when they adopt a series of practices designed to support employees through paid parental leave, improved support for child care, increased accommodations for pregnant or breast-feeding employees, health and wellness benefits and increased flexibility in scheduling.
Close to 100 employers in North Carolina have achieved the Family Forward NC designation (and get to display it on their website). More than half are in the Guilford County area.
“A lot of the companies are asking, ‘What’s in it for me?’” says Cecelia Thompson, executive director of Action Greensboro. “I tell them it’s not just about doing what’s right for the community, but what they need to be successful as employers. With the retirement of Baby Boomers and the influx of a younger generation, the requirements new employees are looking for are different.”
APRIL LARKINS, a project executive at Christman Company, the first construction firm to achieve the Family Friendly NC Employer designation, details some of the elements they offer to employees:
“Our company offers predictable scheduling; we contribute to our employees’ and their dependent’s medical premiums; and we ensure that the needs of pregnant and lactating employees are met, both in an office or on a construction site. Not only does the certification give us a competitive advantage, but the program gives us access to resources… so we can review our policies and identify areas for change.”
Truliant Federal Credit Union, a Greensboro-based company with more than 900 employees in three states, became the first designated financial services institution this year and has publicized the designation in internal communications, on its website and over social media.
“It’s a win-win for us,” says Angela Parham, Truliant’s VP for Human Resources. “It helps our employees with work-life balance and it helps us attract top talent.”
Companies with the Family Friendly NC Employer designation also receive technical assistance from NCECF learning how to implement a total of 19 workplace practices that are supported by evidence as improving workplace conditions.
That can make a difference in a tight hiring market.
“It allows local businesses to retain talent and by retaining talent you’re not having to go out and search for new employees,” says Marvin J. Price, Executive Vice President for Economic Development at the Greensboro Chamber of Commerce. “So now you can go out and focus on what your core business is.”
Having the policies in place also sends a signal to potential employees.The Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco estimates that the US workforce would have 5 million additional workers if workplaces had more family-friendly policies.
High on the list of priorities for younger employees, a survey by the US Chamber of Commerce finds, is child care.
Some 60% of parents cite lack of child care as their reason for leaving their company. By contrast, companies offering onsite child care can decrease employee absences by 30% and employee turnover by 60%.
Action Greensboro, which has its offices in the Greensboro Chamber building, has been launching community and economic development initiatives since 2001, and believes that the new project recruiting employers to participate in child-friendly efforts is consistent with previous efforts.
Success, Cecelia Thompson says, will create a virtuous cycle for the city: As more companies adapt these practices, Greensboro will become better recognized as a hotbed of “family friendly” companies. That means in the near term more people and companies will want to stay and move there. And in the long term, young people who get more early support will grow up to be productive workers and community members.
The NC Early Childhood Foundation, meanwhile, hopes Greensboro’s efforts will inspire companies and communities across the state to apply and become “Family Forward NC certified.”
Future Ready Greensboro is doing its part. By early September, out of 94 companies achieving the designation in the state, 51 were from the Greensboro area. In addition to Christman and Truliant, the Greensboro employers include law firms, manufacturing plants, financial institutions, real estate companies, educational organizations, city and county governments and nonprofits.
After a little more than 6 months, more than 17,000 employees are on board in the Greensboro area – 30% of Future Ready Greensboro’s goal.
“We’re doing a lot of education right now,” says Thompson. “We’re hoping as more companies come to see this as a strategic advantage, it’ll catch fire.”
Notes:
Guilford County’s Ready for School, Ready for Life program: https://publicedworks.org/2024/07/ready-ready-very-big-ideas-for-early-childhood/
Future Ready Greensboro video describing the program: https://youtu.be/FFCJElzwpn0?si=f6sEvtq3vf10A84l
List of Family Forward NC certified employers: https://familyforwardnc.com/directory/