A summer survival guide for working parents

Summer is supposed to feel carefree, but for working parents, an added layer of logistics can cause even more stress than usual. 

While kids are out of school and away from normal child care arrangements, parents are left putting together an elaborate puzzle, says Kaleana Quibell, vice president of well-being at Sequoia. Paired with planning vacations and managing their own workloads, working parents have their hands full. 

"A lot of parents really rely on preschools, daycare, or public schools in order to make sure that they have dependable child care for their kids, and of course, during the summer months, that typically is disrupted," she says. "The biggest thing employers can do is provide parents with additional flexibility in scheduling." 

Read more: Get your summer back: How to establish the right PTO policy for your company 

The need for flexibility is a demand year-round for working parents: 58% of parents say schedule flexibility at work provides them with a sense of fulfillment and relief, according to a report by child care provider Bright Horizons. Additionally, 99% of working parents told Flexjobs a flexible work schedule would make them happier overall. 

While catering to the needs of parents is important, making flexibility a company-wide initiative is imperative, Quibell says. Parents don't necessarily want to be singled out, and other employees will benefit from a more flexible approach to work. 

"When it comes to creating flexible policies, it should be for all employees, because otherwise, it does feel a little biased toward one group or that there's favoritism toward one group," she says. "If we're talking about avoiding meetings for the entire company before 10 a.m., that allows people who might want to work out in the morning, or perhaps walk their dog or do something that's meaningful for them without children, they can still have some of that flexibility." 

Read more: 27% of employees would leave their job if they lost summer Fridays 

Making sure benefits do double duty can give all employees an opportunity to maintain a healthy work-life balance, and do things that would support their mental health, like taking time off. Instituting Summer Fridays is another tactic Quibell has seen that benefits working parents and those without kids. 

"We're going to give our entire company a half day on Friday so that they can leave early to enjoy a longer weekend or travel somewhere," she says. "You're saying, as a company, we recognize a lot of you have external personal obligations and things that you need to do and we want to make it as easy as possible for the entire company." 

While all employees should benefit from company policies around flexibility, there are some companies paying particular attention to the unique needs of their working parent population — one company Quibell worked with organized a bus pick up and drop off from their office parking lot, and partnered with a local camp so parents at the same organization could align their schedules. 

Read more: Adult summer camp: Why this HR tech company went on a three day company offsite

Tapping into employee resource groups geared toward parents and doing quarterly check-ins can also help employers stay on top of accommodations and needs working parents could benefit from year-round. Instead of waiting for employees to ask, Quibell recommends making it clear what the policies are, and that all are welcome to take advantage of them. 

"Rather than leaving it ambiguous and hoping that employees will request it when they need an accommodation, outline the options that are there to help support them," she says. "It's better to think of this company-wide, as opposed to parental policies, because the company has created an inclusive culture all around."