Family Benefits Information
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q Benefits
to On-Site Childcare
q Steps
to Introduce a Childcare Program
Work-family Conflict
v
Work-family conflict refers to the conflicting role
pressures between job and family that are incompatible so that participation in
one role is made more difficult by participation in the other.
v
Many employers have been experimenting with new or
enhanced work-family benefits to increase worker productivity by reducing
absenteeism and turnover.
v
Children and child-care issues may
be one source of work-family conflict.
v
Meta-analysis found a consistent negative
relationship between work-family conflict and job and life satisfaction (Kossek
& Ozeki, 1998). o
Stronger for women. v The
struggle to maintain work/life balance is cited as one of the top two sources
of stress (LoJacono, 2000). v
Numerous recent studies show that when an employee
uses a sick day, chances are 1 in 5 that the employee is actually sick
(LoJacono, 2000).
o
Most frequently, the employee is staying home to care
for a sick family member or child. v
Child illness is identified as a cause for parents
missing between six and twenty-nine days of work annually. o
When regular day-care arrangements fail, workers are
likely to stay home. o
Interruptions in the regular child care/school
routine cause parents to lose an average of eight workdays per year. o
The absenteeism and shortened workdays and hours have
lost companies an average of $88,000 per year, per employee. (LoJacono, 2000). v
Turnover
can be very expensive. o
Turnover can cost anywhere from $10,000 to two and a
half times salary per lost employee (Reynolds, 1998). v
Number
of employers providing on-site childcare has risen over the past 18 years
(Leonard, 2000). o
Approximately 8,000 workplaces now have on-site
centers (compared to only 204 in 1982). v Employer-sponsored childcare
programs are growing five times faster than other types of child care benefits. v
On-site
childcare is one way for employers to recruit and retain experienced and
talented workers. o
Many of whom would choose to leave the workforce if quality
day care options were not available. v
Childcare costs, quality, and availability are all
issues that on-site childcare may address. (Han & Waldfogel, 2001). v
Childcare is very expensive and labor intensive
(Wiscombe, 2001). o
Cost of childcare for families as a percent of income
is third—only behind food and shelter. o
Example—nanny’s salary $450/wk. v A tight labor market, extremely high
turnover rates, and low wages within the child care industry makes finding
quality care tough. v
Many
childcare decisions are made on basis of location, price, and hours of
operations, while issues of staff training and facility curriculum are
secondary (Siwolop, 2001). v
Nearly 30 million families have children under the
age of 14. o
Either both parent’s work or the family is headed by
a single, working parent (Vincola, 1999). §
Custodial fathers are the fastest growing segment
demographically in the population. §
For most of these parents, the search for quality
childcare is a struggle. v
Transition from Welfare to Work o
A recent study of welfare mothers revealed that 60%
say that lack of childcare prevented them from working and was their reason for
receiving Aid to Families with Dependent Children. §
The transition to work intensifies the need for
on-site childcare. (Vincola,
1999). v
Having an employer-sponsored child care center also
eases the transition back to work for new mothers (Vincola, 1999). o
Access to quality affordable childcare was a barrier
for employees returning to work after the birth of a child. v
St. Paul
Companies, an insurance company in Minnesota, provides a childcare center for
its employees (Vincola, 1999). o
Provides a feeling of security for parents. o
Parents have special times with children (Lunch
breaks, special events, the commute to and from work.) o
“ To have the best of the person we need to have the whole
person.” §
St. Paul Companies, Inc. v
Mixed
findings on the effects of on-site child care on absenteeism, turnover, and
productivity (Kossek & Nichol, 1992). o
Users of on-site childcare had less absenteeism than
nonusers (Milkovich & Gomez, 1976). o
On-site childcare increases performance and
production, and decreases sick time (Smith, 2000). o In several
studies, up to 73% of managers perceived an increase in production from an on-site
childcare center. v
The initial expense and ongoing maintenance of a
child care center may be outweighed by increased productivity, enhanced
recruitment and retention, and increased employee morale and loyalty (Vincola,
1999). o
Non-users of childcare don’t have to fill in as much
for absent parents. o
Anxiety levels of parents have gone down. Literature
Benefits to On-Site Childcare
