Supporting working parents is good for business

What do today’s workforce believe are “meaningful” benefits? Given that there could be up to five generations in many organizations, what employees want, and need may vary based on their life stage. Most companies provide medical and financial supports, but what about familial care (child, elder, pet) supports? These are crucial for many employees as they balance life responsibilities with their career journey. It is critical we shed light on these much-needed benefits that support one of the largest demographics of employees.

Over the past decade, my company, Bright Horizons has surveyed the state of working parents through the annual Modern Family Index research study, which highlights the unique challenges and priorities faced by this important group of workers. This year marked the tenth year of conducting this study and was an opportunity to reflect on what has changed for working parents over the past decade –for better or worse. The study explored their sentiments on the struggles they face as career and family remain important priorities.

The research revealed that working parents today are emboldened and more outspoken than previous generations, and work/life balance is non-negotiable for many (70%) when it comes to employer benefits. While there are similarities between parents in 2024 and 2014 when it comes to prioritizing their families (77% vs. 76%), working parents now don’t have the same fears around speaking up about their family needs.

Many workplaces though are stuck in 2014, struggling to keep up with this generation. Nearly half (46%) of parents placed “help paying for child care” atop their benefits wish lists – even above unlimited remote work (40%) and more flexibility (45%). Despite this clear call for support, less than a third (29%) are getting this assistance from their employers. And this lack of child care support is leaving a lasting impact when it comes to family planning. Two thirds (66%) of those with one child say they’d consider waiting to grow their families until they’ve landed at a company offering the family planning benefits.

Yet we know from several sources that working parents are more likely to stay with an organization that allows them to achieve work/life balance. One report found businesses who offer onsite child care for employees experience a 7.4 times higher retention rate and 8.9 times more loyal employees. Additionally, data from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce shows offering on-site child care can decrease employee absences by 30% and turnover by 60%.

In the 2022 Modern Family Index survey, working parents were clear about which benefits would make them more likely to stay with their current employer. While medical, dental, and vision coverage (81%) are critical, dependent-care benefits hold a lot of sway: 66% of working parents would be more likely to stay for mental health coverage, 60% said they would stay for emergency child care, 58% would remain loyal for everyday child care, and 59% would stay for educational financial support.

Progressive companies like Hormel Foods, Mercedes, Goldman Sachs, Microsoft, and Walmart, to name a few, have recognized the importance of providing family-friendly benefits like on-site child care and back-up care days, but have certainly been in the minority. According to a Walmart spokesperson, having onsite child care was the number one request from Walmart employees when asked what they wanted most at their new campus.

One of our employer clients is Weill Cornell, one of the top medical schools in the country. The graduate medical school for Cornell University, Weill Cornell serves over three million patients each year at more than 150 locations across the New York metro area. They currently have two child care centers available for employees. The first opened in 2013 and their second in 2017.

According to Eric M. Saidel, Weill Cornell’s Interim Senior Director of Human Resources, “We have an incredibly diverse workforce. If we want them to have the peace of mind they need to be at their best and provide the best care, we need to support them. Also, we’re located in New York City where child care is both hard to access and extremely expensive. There was a recent New York Times article that said parents are leaving New York, cutting their work hours, or changing jobs because of the cost and lack of access to child care.”

He continued, “Ultimately, we want to remove the stress of finding child care so that our employees can bring their best selves to work every day and continue to have the impact that we strive for.”

The Weill Cornell child care centers, like many of our hospital clients are open from 7:30 in the morning until 6:00 in the evening every day of the week to support the extended hours and varied shifts health care professional’s work. The hospital also offers a summer camp program to help fill in the care gaps that school usually provides, while also offering children a high-quality education in the summer months.

“Our ultimate goal,” said Saidel, “is to provide child care to as much of our population as possible, and to do so in an affordable way for those families. There’s no one-size-fits-all solution for child care and we want that to be reflected in every aspect of our offerings, right down to the pricing of our centers.”

Related: Evaluating the cost-benefit analysis of onsite childcare for employers

In terms of ROI, employers who provide access and financial support to work life balance benefits like child care and elder care are seeing returns. Lars Minns, Mercedes-Benz North American CHRO, explains the unique ROI the center offers: “I think if we have one or all families saying to us, ‘Thank you very much for this great benefit,’ which is a significant return on investment that a dollar amount can never measure.” While Minns emphasizes part of the impact of offering on-site child care, the center has also helped Mercedes maintain a high retention rate in the challenging Atlanta job market.

These types of supports are terrific candidate attraction and retention strategies. Employees shouldn’t have to ask…forward thinking organizations who offer these much-needed supports are creating caring cultures and loyalty year-round. By helping employees feel less stressed about their situations at home, companies can reduce burnout and allow them to bring their best selves to the workplace.

Business leaders find themselves faced with mounting pressure to provide support for working parents in meaningful ways, but they must act quickly as working parents are willing to make job changes to meet their family responsibilities. If companies don’t listen to the explicit needs of working parents, they will struggle to attract and retain top talent, including their future leaders. Given the weight family carries in the minds and priorities of working parents, companies may need to evaluate, and improve upon, their benefit supports for working parents – including the amount of child care specific offerings available. It’s my personal belief that when people are anchored at home, they can be more productive at work. They are more loyal, so everybody wins: the employee, their family and the employer.

Priya Krishnan, Chief Digital and Transformation Officer at Bright Horizons