Working parents don't have it easy, often caught between the demands of their
President Biden's American Rescue Plan Act provided $24 billion in funding to
"Congress took some really bold action and necessary steps to invest critical funds to stabilize the childcare market during the height of the pandemic," says Nina Perez, national director for early learning at MomsRising, a social welfare organization and advocacy group dedicated to families. "Without continued investment, the [U.S.] is headed towards a giant cliff."
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Once the funding is gone, the child care industry will be in crisis, underlines Perez. The Century Foundation found that more than 70,000 child care programs will likely close and the industry is estimated to lose 232,000 jobs. This means fewer slots for kids, higher child care costs and fewer parents (especially mothers) in the workforce.
"If you don't have enough providers, you take less children in, but then you can't keep your doors open because you don't have enough children," says Perez. "The access to care is really going to be diminished."
Notably, Democrats have introduced a bill to keep the child care industry afloat: The Child Care Stabilization Act would provide $16 billion in mandatory funding each year for five years to child care providers. However, the White House does not plan to prioritize the bill, and few are confident it will be passed before the end of the year.
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"This is a cliffhanger nobody needs," says Perez. "Congress needs to take action and pass the Child Care Stabilization Act so families aren't thrown off a fiscal cliff. Child care is so critical to our economy and this will affect businesses' bottom lines."
Perez encourages employers to put pressure on their elected leaders to move this bill forward. In the meantime, employers have to prepare to support parents as they struggle to find and pay for child care, advises Tom Wyatt, chairman and CEO of child care and education provider KinderCare.
For Wyatt, family support is a moral and strategic move for any company. According to KinderCare's 2023 Parent Confidence Report, child care benefits are now ranked second in reasons for parents to stay at their current jobs
"Parents comprise one-third of the U.S. workforce," says Wyatt. "First and foremost, employers must consider the needs of their workforce to best understand how to support them."
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Depending on the workforce, there are several different benefits that Wyatt believes are critical to ensuring families can access child care. Employers can cover anywhere from 10% or 100% of child care costs for employees, so parents can at least save money on the child care center of their choosing. Additionally, employers can provide workers with a network of providers to choose from, whether it's daycare centers, babysitters or tutors, so employees have a resource for back-up care in case something falls through. If employers have the resources, an on-site care center could be another consideration, Wyatt says
"For completely in-person workforces, a custom-built, on-site or nearby center that reflects your unique brand, workforce and child care needs can be the perfect benefit option," he says. "For some employers, on-site is appealing because the company may be situated within a childcare desert with few options for parents."
Alongside access and financial assistance, Wyatt advises employers to encourage a flexible, and if possible, hybrid working environment, where employees can work around their children's schedules.
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Perez and Wyatt agree that Congress and employers cannot sit back and watch the child care industry fall apart. But only time will tell if families and child care providers will see any relief.
"If you want a workforce that is focused at work, it's important to have high quality and reliable childcare," says Perez. "Tell your elected leaders that this matters to businesses, that they need to take care of this childcare cliff."
