Why Offering Childcare to Your Employees Makes Good Business Sense

If you have kids, you probably have concerns about your childcare arrangements. Whether you can bring them to a early learning center for children or if you bring them elsewhere, this is a source of worry and concern for parents around the country. Nearly a quarter of all American parents have to work with multiple arrangements for their children. It costs more to cover childcare for two children than it costs for the average rent for people in every state in the country. Unlike other nations, parents in the United States are responsible for finding childcare options for their kids themselves at least 90% of the time. This is one reason that many businesses are starting to offer childcare for their employees.andnbsp;

4 Reasons to Consider Starting Employer Sponsored Childcare Programs:

1. You will have an easier time keeping employees. Companies that offer onsite daycare are more attractive to potential employees. These programs are also great at keeping current employees happy as they do not have to spend as much time worrying about finding a daycare center for their kids. More than 40% of parents surveyed said that they see a lot of value in being offered childcare at work. Employee turnover is a big problem for many companies around the country. The costs associated with hiring and training new employees can be huge. Keeping your current staff happy will have a positive impact on your bottom line, there is no question about that.
2. Your employees will be more productive. When your employees know their children are safe and secure, they work harder and better. Having an early learning center for children onsite may be one way to go. Companies with onsite childcare say their employees work harder and get more done. The National Conference of State Legislatures issued a report showing that childcare worries cause more problems for workers than any other issue outside of the work they do. Employees who have onsite childcare are able to focus more on the job they are doing than those who do not.
3. You will have less absenteeism on behalf of your employees. Many of the problems workers have getting to work on time or at all are causes by problems with their childcare arrangements. Nearly 90% of companies surveyed admitted any issues they had with their employees calling in sick or showing up to work late were due to childcare issues. Another 80% reported employees leaving work early to handle childcare problems. These issues can be resolved completely with onsite corporate daycare services.
4. It can save your business money. University of North Carolina professor Rachel Mills found in 2005 that when employees at light manufacturing firms were offered onsite childcare, saved money on the endeavor. This made any money the companies put out for the solutions for corporate childcare to be money very well spent.

So, you are convinced that you need to provide your employees with childcare at work, how do you do it? Many companies will work with independent contractors to set up corporate childcare facilities at their offices. There are some other options for companies that want to do the right thing by the parents who work for them. Your firm can offer vouchers for childcare that is not offered onsite. For many parents, one big issue is having a back up plan. What can they do, for instance, if the early learning center for children they use closes for the day due to inclement weather? Even if you have a facility onsite that is really only for emergency situations like these, you will reduce the days your staff take off work to deal with childcare issues.

Finding the right way to help your employees with their childcare may differ from business to business. If you are concerned about the parents who work for you, one way to deal with that is to ask them what kinds of childcare solutions would work best for them. Maybe there is a great early learning center for children that everyone in town wants to use and you can provide vouchers for that. Conversely, it might make more sense for your workforce to have an onsite facility. Talk to your staff and find the best solution for your company.