Childcare Support for Working Families

The early childhood education and care system isn't working how it should - and too many parents are stuck. Fees are up 11% in a single year. A quarter of families are paying more out of pocket even after their subsidy. A quarter of Australians can't even find a place. And too many services are going years without a safety check. Children deserve better than this. One answer being floated - direct subsidies to parents for grandparents or nannies - won't bring costs down and it won't improve safety. And we know that because we tried it. Scott Morrison's Nanny Pilot Program launched in 2016 and quietly died because it was too expensive for families and didn't attract caregivers. Fragmented subsidies don't fix a broken system. They just create new blind spots. That's why The Parenthood campaigns for wholesale reform. For early education and care where quality is paramount, national standards are enforced, funding reflects real costs, places exist in the communities that need them and transparency so parents know what they're paying for and why. Real choice only exists when there's a foundation underneath it. Right now, too many families don't have that foundation. That's what I've written about in today's The Australian Financial Review and it's what we need to be demanding from our policymakers. https://lnkd.in/gr5mFwTy

Moms don't need flowers for Mother's Day. We need policies to support us. Here are 20 company policies that actually help moms. FLEXIBILITY 1. 100% remote or hybrid work with no core hours requirement 2. School calendar alignment with flexible Fridays, spring break, and summer hours 3. Sick days that cover sick kids, not just sick employees 4. Meeting-free windows during school drop-off and pickup hours LEAVE 5. 6 months fully paid maternity leave, no cliff 6. Phased return to work at 50% capacity for the first 30 days back 7. Paid leave for fertility treatments, miscarriage, and pregnancy loss 8. Emergency childcare days, paid and separate from PTO FINANCIAL 9. Childcare stipend, monthly, no receipts required 10. Fertility and adoption financial assistance 11. Student loan repayment support for moms returning to the workforce 12. Equal pay audits published annually, broken down by gender and parental status HEALTH 13. Postpartum mental health coverage with therapy fully covered and no copay 14. Lactation rooms in every office, plus a shipping stipend for pumping while traveling 15. Menopause and perimenopause support covered under health benefits 16. Doula and midwife costs covered under maternity benefits CAREER 17. Returnship program for moms who took career breaks, structured, paid, and in real roles 18. Sponsorship program pairing senior women with moms on the leadership track 19. No penalizing part-time work for promotion eligibility 20. Parental status-blind promotion reviews with parental status removed from evaluations entirely No flowers. No cards. No cakes. Policies. Change. Money. Happy Mother's Day. Does your workplace support moms? Tag them and shout them out! ♻️ Share this post to support moms in the workplace. 🔔 Follow Jenny Stojkovic for more content like this.

The National Vital Statics Report on U.S. birth trends has been released. This year has shown a decrease in overall birth rates, with significant patterns in age-specific fertility and prenatal care dynamics. Such insights not only shed light on public health strategies but also provide a crucial lens through which employers can enhance workplace policies. Key findings: -A decline in the general fertility rate and specific decreases across different age groups. -A notable reduction in early prenatal care and smoking during pregnancy. -Changes in delivery methods, including a slight increase in cesarean rates. -Stability in Medicaid as a primary source for delivery payments, indicating the ongoing importance of supportive healthcare policies. Employers play a pivotal role in supporting the workforce, especially expectant and new parents. Here are 10 strategic solutions that can be implemented to foster a supportive work environment: 1- Flexible Working Hours: Adapt work schedules to accommodate prenatal appointments and postpartum needs. 2- Remote Work Options: Provide options for telecommuting to help manage pregnancy-related fatigue and doctor's visits. 3- Extended Parental Leave: Offer more generous leave policies to support parental bonding and childcare. 4- Fertility Benefits: Enhance healthcare coverage to fertility care. 5- Onsite Childcare: Establish or subsidize childcare facilities at or near the workplace to ease the burden on working parents or increased daycare funds. 6- Employee Assistance Programs: Offer programs that provide counseling and support for prenatal and postnatal care. 7- Education and Training: Conduct workshops on family planning, prenatal health, and parenting to educate employees. 8- Support for Breastfeeding Mothers: Provide private, comfortable spaces for breastfeeding and allow breaks as needed. 9-Return-to-Work Programs: Create phased return-to-work options for new parents to ease the transition while maintaining career trajectories. 10- Wellness Programs: Implement programs focused on maternal health and stress management to support overall well-being. As we move forward, understanding and adapting to the evolving demographic trends will be key in crafting effective corporate policies that align with the needs of a diverse workforce. What is your organization doing to support families? List it in the comments ⬇️ #employeebenefits #parentalsupport

New study from National Bureau of Economic Research highlights a powerful policy insight: expanding access to full-day childcare can significantly boost employment and earnings for mothers. The study examines the 2016 federal initiative that expanded full-day programming in Head Start and links program data with employment and household data. The results are striking: • Full-day Head Start enrollment increased by 19% in targeted areas. • Single mothers’ employment rose by 1.9%. • Working hours increased by 2.5%. • Earnings grew by 6.5%. The takeaway is clear: childcare availability is a labor market and economic policy lever. Extending program hours meaningfully improves mothers’ ability to work, increasing both employment and income. This study, by professors Chloe Gibbs, Esra Kose, and Maria Fernanda Rosales Rueda, illustrates a simple but important point: childcare and opportunity go hand in hand. https://lnkd.in/gVg4mpxe

If you're serious about retaining and growing your working parent talent, childcare benefits aren't a nice-to-have; they're a strategic imperative. The reality for millions of employees right now is that the lack of affordable, reliable childcare is a massive barrier to productivity, career progression, and even simply showing up to work consistently. When parents, particularly mothers, struggle with childcare, it directly impacts their mental bandwidth, creates immense stress, and often forces them to step back from their careers or leave the workforce entirely. This means companies are losing experienced, valuable talent – and incurring significant replacement costs – not because of performance, but due to external life demands. By offering robust childcare support – whether it's on-site facilities, subsidies, stipends, or even robust dependent care FSAs – organizations are making a direct investment in their workforce. It signals an empathetic, human-centric culture that understands and supports the whole employee. This isn't just about retention; it's about enabling career growth, fostering greater diversity, and ultimately, ensuring your best talent can thrive without constantly battling an impossible work-life equation. Prioritize childcare, and watch your working parent talent flourish. #ChildcareBenefits #WorkingParents #EmployeeRetention #TalentStrategy #HRLeadership #FutureOfWork

🧭 This year, one of my goals for the #childcare field is identifying and advancing workforce solutions that are practical, scalable, and grounded in reality. The workforce crisis won’t be solved by wishful thinking or by relying on a pipeline that doesn’t exist. Families need care now. Programs need staff now. Policymakers need a realistic workforce strategy now. One of the most practical steps we can take is to formally adopt the Child Development Associate (CDA) credential as the national entry point into the child care profession. This isn’t a radical idea. It’s a proven one. Head Start and the U.S. military child care system (two of the highest-quality early childhood systems in the country) built their workforce around the CDA because it’s competency-based, practice-focused, and scalable. Degrees matter, especially for leadership and long-term advancement. But we cannot “degree our way out” of today's shortage. Requiring degrees as the primary entry point narrows the workforce pipeline precisely when we need to widen it. In my latest blog for Buffett Early Childhood Institute at the University of Nebraska, I make the case for a clear national goal: at least one CDA-credentialed educator in every classroom, paired with real pathways for growth, not barriers at the door. If we are serious about stabilizing child care, supporting families, and protecting quality, this is where we should start. A national goal of one CDA-credentialed educator per classroom is ambitious, measurable, and achievable, but it’s a conversation worth having—now. I’d love to hear from states, providers, and educators already using the CDA as a workforce foundation. What’s working, and what needs to change? 🔗 Link to the blog in the comments.

I'm excited to share a proposal I co-authored for Project 2029: the Child Care Choice Guarantee. I got to work on this with people I deeply respect: Tara McGuinness and Alyson Silkowski from the New Practice Lab at New America and Mario Cardona, a former White House colleague from the Biden Administration. The proposal was made better by a recent New Practice Lab research study that asked parents what they wanted when it comes to child care and the clear answer was more choices and time back to spend with their children. The proposal gives every family a real choice: free, high-quality child care, or a $1,000/month cash benefit (CareCredit) they can use for care at home or with someone they trust. A few highlights: ☑️ Free child care slots at centers, Head Start, home-based providers, and schools open to every family, regardless of income and without requirements to fill out burdensome paperwork to prove eligiblity. ☑️A CareCredit option for families who'd rather care for their own kids or pay a relative or trusted caregiver, available to families earning under $400,000. ☑️Real investment in the child care workforce and infrastructure, so the supply of quality care actually grows instead of shrinking. As we head into 2028, every candidate is going to need an answer on child care. It's top-of-mind for families across the income spectrum, and the current system isn't holding. This is Project 2029's first major domestic spending proposal, and I think that says something about how central child care needs to be to the conversation. I'd love to hear what resonates with you and what you think 2028 candidates should be talking about when it comes to child care. Drop your thoughts in the comments. https://lnkd.in/eSjHgZ8Q

73% of your workforce is caretaking for someone. That’s likely the largest single demographic in your community. Want to know the true cost of companies failing to attract, support and retain those of us that are juggling caretaking and work? It’s $35 BILLION a year (according to a study from Harvard Business School). Shocked by that number? I’m not. I see the outcomes of this lack of support every single day. This isn’t just parents caring for kids - caregiving expands much further to include multi-generational support, which is on the rise. 📉 Many of these caregivers are under-represented voices in the workplace and in leadership roles. When we lose their voices we lose revenue too. Companies with more diverse teams have 19% higher revenue and 2.5x higher cash flow per employee. Plus inclusive teams are up to 35% more productive (according to research from Accenture). 💰 Replacing workers is far more expensive than maintaining existing ones (both in time and financial resources), especially in revenue-generating roles. … which all contributes to that $35 Billion a year. So what do caretakers want from their employers? Real flexibility. Without fear of retribution. For some that means flexibility at work so they can stay at their full-time jobs while managing caretaking responsibilities. (I remember two years ago when an enterprise employee reached out to me to share that her proposal for part-time work went up to the GM only to be denied.) For others, it’s turning to self-employment. (I get 200+ DMs per year of folks who are leaving traditional employment to jump into independent work) So as an employer, what’s your next move? I’ve got two major plays for you: 1️⃣ Modernize Caregiver-Focused Company Policies When we build policy to center caregivers, everyone benefits. Caregivers need flex time, childcare support, PAID LEAVE, and resources like manager training and ERGs for caregivers who care for other adults. 2️⃣ Adopt a Blended Workforce Model This is where independent/contract workers team up with regular employees to complete both ongoing work and deliverable-based projects. Sometimes blended teams are made up of full-time employees and folks who downshift into part-time contract work. Fractional models are also popular here for senior and highly-skilled leaders stepping into new caregiving chapters. 🌟 For the record, that second one is where we shine at Lions & Tigers. We’re building and supporting blended workforces that put mothers and professionals in the global majority at the center and drive innovation and profitability. 🌟 And ultimately we’re co-designing a more human and valued work experience alongside our clients. Since 2018, we’ve enabled $34M of economic access for over 240 consultants and helped employers like Microsoft, Smartsheet and Alaska Airlines build the future of work. (More about navigating career attrition on the L&T blog 👇) 

Too often the case for early years investment gets made on moral grounds alone. This new report makes it on fiscal ones, and does so with a level of precision that Ministers of Finance & Planning can actually use. Big Wins for Early Childhood, published this month by Theirworld with the Learning For Well-Being Institute and NYU Global TIES for Children, is an investment guide rather than another advocacy paper. It sets out seven proven interventions across healthcare, preschool and family support, each costed per child, each with a return on investment figure drawn from evidence at scale in low and middle-income countries. The interventions are organised around the three Act for Early Years campaign goals: 1. Universal access to quality primary healthcare across pregnancy, birth and early childhood. 2. Universal access to quality, inclusive preschool and affordable childcare. 3. Universal support for families, including child benefits and parent and caregiver support. Three points are worth pulling out. The cost of inaction in low-income countries can exceed 9% of GDP for missing quality preschool alone. The poorer the country, the higher the price of waiting. This is not a future crisis. It is a recurring fiscal drag that compounds quietly across childhoods. Universal provision outperforms targeted approaches on every outcome measured. Coordinated packages of child benefits, parental leave and childcare deliver faster and fairer results than means-tested alternatives, and they reach the children most likely to be missed by eligibility rules. Not all returns sit decades away. Research by the Learning for Well-being Institute shows measurable shifts in poverty, women’s employment and pre-primary enrolment within a single political cycle. That changes the political calculus, which is often what has held these conversations back. The report is designed to feed directly into the 2027 International Financing Summit for Early Childhood. Governments arriving will be asked to make specific, costed pledges across the three Act for Early Years goals. This is the clearest set of options any of them have been given to do that. Link to the report in the comments.

I’m fired up by the flood of posts demanding better paid leave, childcare, and maternal health—especially in light of the underwhelming White House birth rate proposals. To HR leaders and employers: It’s not your job to increase the birth rate—but you do have the power to make your workplace a safe, supportive space for working parents. Here are 10 strategies to start (from a former HR exec): 1. Parent ERGs A place to connect, share advice, and host expert-led sessions. Bring in speakers like Michelle Yu or Kelly Ling to help expecting parents plan for parental leave. 2. Paid leave policies Implement paid leave for birthing, non-birthing, adoption, pregnancy loss, medical, and disability. 3. Mental health support Platforms like BetterHelp or Seven Starling can help ease overwhelm. 4. Fertility benefits In the U.S., 12-15% of couples experience infertility. Support all paths to parenthood with Carrot Fertility or Maven Clinic. 5. Financial wellness Consider platforms like Aura Finance and StorkFund or speakers like Financial Doula to empower families with financial education and planning. 6. Flexible work schedules 67% of families have two working parents. Help them manage both roles. 7. Pump-friendly policies Create a private, comfortable space in the office for moms. For remote, avoid enforcing cameras on—especially for moms who have to pump or parents who have to field sick days. 8. Stipends for wellness/learning Let them choose how to invest—especially before/after parental leave. Reimburse them for parental leave coaching through platforms like Josie, Leona, or Parentaly. 9. Mom-friendly travel policies Traveling as a breastfeeding mom is cumbersome - support with Milk Stork or childcare travel reimbursements. 10. Manager training Teach prioritization to prevent burnout and support parents effectively. --- Need help bringing this to life? I advise companies on how to turn these ideas into reality—happy to connect.