Establish an employee caregiver network
Across the U.S., families struggle to find consistent, affordable, safe, and accessible child care. Families living below 50% AMI often have even fewer child care options. Even when high-quality care is available, child illnesses and other emergencies can prevent caregivers from going to work, possibly impacting their weekly earnings.
Establish a caregiver network to provide support, guidance, and ideas for how to navigate dependent-related issues as well as advocate for increased employment benefits.
Here are steps to get you started:
Collaborate with coworkers. Establish an inclusive caregiver network or working parents' support group. Meet regularly to discuss how to best support each other, strategies for managing child care concerns, and ideas of best practices your employer can implement.
Advocate for changes to policies. Work with your employment's management and human resources department to advocate for child-friendly policies or benefits, such as:
Granting a certain number of days of excused absences or subsidized child care for dependent or dependent-care related emergencies.
Enabling flexible weekly schedules such as late start or early end times.
Offering flexible work arrangements for employees with dependents such as the ability to work from home when possible.
Extending parental leave to address short-term child care costs.
Developing an on-site child care center.
Best Practices / Innovative Programs
Harvard Business Review published a guide on establishing a working parents' support group.
Best Buy has multiple innovative programs for employees including a Care Coordinator to help parents/adult caregivers navigate legal, housing, and medical issues, up to $15,000 in reimbursements for employees facing surrogacy, adoption, or infertility treatment costs, back up childcare, and discounted daycare and early education program
