Are you an employer? Have you ever wondered how you could support your employees who are pregnant or have young children? During the pandemic the need for quality child care was highlighted because of how child care directly affects many aspects of a community. Difficulties with child care were also brought to the attention of communities.
Jennifer Traffis, of the Family Conservancy in Wyandotte County, leads a collaborative effort to improve child care. She wrote an article about how businesses can use the child care tax credit. This could be a way for employers to support their employees while it also benefits them. She explains the workforce connection and how child care is foundational to the health and stability of the economy. “Our economic strength relies on business, businesses rely on employees, and employees with young children rely on child care. Without child care, working families cannot fully and adequately participate in the workforce, which negatively impacts the economy and our local business sector’s bottom line.” She further explains, “The child care sector is significantly underfunded, and the business model is broken. Thus, employers are facing a workforce shortage due to the lack of reliable, affordable, quality child care options for families.”
She suggests that this problem isn’t just a family problem anymore but a community problem. When families have support from others around them then everyone wins. When businesses support their employees during their child bearing years, employers’ benefit. Employees will have improved morale and job satisfaction. The employer creates a loyal employee that feels supported. It can also attract quality employees when they offer benefits that other employers do not.
Child care tax credits are also offered to businesses that support child care efforts. More information about the child care tax credit can be found at: https://www.raisingwyco.org/take-action.
If you click on Kansas Employer Child Care Tax Credit Toolkit is has an explanation on how it works at the federal and state level. Check it out!
There are many other ways employers can support their employees during pregnancy, lactation, and the early years.
1. Talk about plans and expectations early. There are laws in place to help protect this section of the population. It’s important that employees and employers have an open line of communication for both parties to express their needs and concerns.
2. Accommodate nursing mothers. Supporting nursing mothers results in a 3:1 return on investment through lower healthcare costs, employee absenteeism, turnover rates and productivity and loyalty.
3. Supporting fathers. Fathers need support to so they can be engaged with their family and balance providing financially and emotionally to his partner and children.
4. Add dependent care flexible spending accounts to your company benefits. This allows parents to save for child care with tax advantages.
5. Add a child care subsidy into your budget.
6. Implement an infants-at-work program as a low-cost child care solution and to support a positive work-life balance. Allowing mothers and babies to be together fulfills many needs. Of course, this isn’t always a solution since safety must be first. Not all industries could have infants at the workplace.
7. Expand parental leave. Allow extended, paid parental leave, including for adoptive and foster care parents.
8. Changing company policies. Set a predictable work schedule or think outside the box such as remote positions or part-time or shared schedules.
Other resources employers could utilize to get ideas can be found at https://childcareinkansas.com/employer-resources/ or https://first1000daysks.org/familyfowardks/
Monique Koerner is the Family and Community Wellness Agent with K-State Research and Extension – Cottonwood District. You may reach her at: 785-628-9430 or moniquek@ksu.edu.
