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After weeks of research, I’ve identified 4 categories of solutions employers should consider to support parents through the next year of childcare & education. On the back of a pandemic. And a race crisis. While they show up to meetings with a smile…/1
#1 - Give money & time. This is tough during a recession but we saw just how quickly companies could open up the coffers during June’s acute race crisis. CFOs got creative & budgets were rearranged./2
For parents, dollars for childcare provide the freedom and flexibility to cobble together the supports they’ll need during this unpredictable time.
Parents will also need time to simply hold down the fort, homeschool and serve as their own backup childcare./3
Parents will also need time to simply hold down the fort, homeschool and serve as their own backup childcare./3
Stay current on covid labor laws like FFCRA. And, if you can, message now that parents can reduce their schedules or share jobs. 1 in 5 working parents say that they or their partner are considering leaving the workforce to care for their children./4 https://www.investinparents.com/about-the-pledge
Employers must reassure parents that they don’t have to make binary decisions - stop working altogether or work as usual. Of course, that message has to be true./5
#2 - Provide childcare benefits & perks. In this new abnormal, parents will need more childcare options than before. Access to multiple institutions (for instance, multiple schools for multi-child households) will be impractical or unpredictable./6
General providers aren’t equipped to provide speciality care. Grandma isn’t an e-learning specialist nor is the after-school babysitter a speech pathologist./7
Employers can assist parents by leveraging benefits providers or even crowdsourcing curated lists of local tutors & accessible resources that give them a place to start./8
It’s also the time to provide and assess the utility of backup childcare options. Gone are the days when parents will be relieved to invite a stranger into the home to keep an eye on a 7th grader who’s learning virtually while dad attends a daylong Zoom “offsite”./9
Parents need more reassurance about how these care providers are vetted & more empowerment & guidance on how to select the one who will give them peace of mind./10
Finally, the transition from professional to parent is a whiplash injury that leaves parents with no time for themselves. Employers can consider second shift perks that might buy parents 30 minutes of coverage a day. Heck, I'll take 15, amirite?!/11
To preempt concerns about family-status discrimination (I see you, Legal Team!) and keep costs contained, you can keep the perks kid-specific so that every employee is eligible but non-parents are unlikely to apply./12 https://www.pcmag.com/news/the-best-subscription-boxes-for-kids
#3 - Adjust performance management & require education. Companies need to make working flexibly the norm. This will require managing performance based on impact, not hours clocked (what we all should’ve been doing anyway!), for roles where that’s possible./13
It will also require education & empathy building for managers, who are responsible for parents’ professional outcomes, & peers, who deserve to hear that they won’t be expected to carry parents’ workloads. What does “all in this together” actually look like through 2021?/14
#4 - Foster socioemotional support & community. It takes a village and parents just want to know they’re not alone in this struggle. Build touch points for company leaders to share their parenting experiences and demonstrate vulnerability./15
Create and leverage your parent ERG as a community touchpoint. Bring in expert facilitators to help normalize stressors and talk through unique circumstances. Provide 1:1 coaching and parent/family therapy even for parents who aren’t on your health plan./16
Mechanize communication channels for people with kids around the same age or with the same needs to share best practices./17
Remember that one offering will work universally. A suite of solutions and the ability to accommodate specific needs will be required to address the vast diversity of parenting circumstances./18
Companies are in the unique position of providing more clarity and certainty to parents than titular sources of authority (federal government, local school systems)./19
By providing proactive supports now, employers can meet this special moment to give parents an anchor of ownership during this wildly uncertain time, which can help inform (vs. react to) the decisions they’re making. Who’s up for the challenge... and responsibility?/end
PS - “Solutions” is way too strong a word. Lots go with “stopgaps.”/
