How Businesses Can Eliminate the Childcare Barrier for Working Parents

From the U.S. Chamber of Commerce

Businesses leaders and childcare advocacy experts shared their experiences in tackling childcare at the U.S. Chamber Foundation’s latest Talent Forward event.

Why it matters: Many working parents have not yet returned to work due to current or shifting guidelines affecting their childcare arrangements. These long-term decisions based on short-term circumstances will continue to have a lasting effect on the workforce. Chamber Foundation research found there has been more than $3 billion in foregone wages due to working parents declining new opportunities because of childcare needs.

TOOTRiS Founder and CEO Alessandra Lezama said small- and medium-sized employers should consider offering benefits around childcare as a competitive advantage when trying to hire in the marketplace.

More takeaways:

• Lilia Vergara, director of human resources at Dr. Bronner’s, said the first step for employers in providing any kind of childcare solutions for employees is to “find out exactly what employees need.”
• To remove barriers in the workforce like childcare, states have an opportunity to build programs that create a pipeline of qualified childcare providers, says Laura Kaloi of Stride Policy Solutions.
• “We need to target support and resources for childcare to those families that truly need it,” says Abby McCloskey, founder and principal of McCloskey Policy.

Click here to view the entire program.