Frequently Asked Question: What are the pros and cons of an on-site daycare facility and an employee referral program?
Direct childcare and programs that make family care responsibilities easier to achieve come in many different forms in the public institutions and private companies that are taking on the more responsibility for helping their employees with work-family issues. For instance, “some organizations directly subsidize daycare centres or private home daycare placements. Others underwrite the cost of information and resource services, including parent education or financial assistance not only for daytime childcare but also for infant care, after school care, summer programs, emergency/sick care and other work-family issues. Still others offer assistance in the form of flexible work schedules, alternative work arrangements, enhanced benefit packages and leave provisions, or flexible spending accounts, vouchers and placement subsidies” (The Corporate Ethics Monitor, Volume 1, Issue 1, page 7). The possibilities are endless and extremely varied.
When an organization is planning a childcare or eldercare program, it is important, like with all other employee programs, to consult with employees to determine where their needs generally lie. Some occupations, for instance those with multiple shifts, perhaps would benefit more with after school programs and alternate work arrangements. Others might benefit more from extensive summer programs along with flexible work arrangements. The success of the program depends on the needs of the employees so the best programs have been developed with the help and guidance of employee leaders or representatives and within the context of a complete employee assistance program.
There are two major types of direct childcare: on- or near-site childcare centres versus referral services. On-site childcare centres are usually set up so that “the company renovates space and turns over the deed to a registered not-for-profit entity created for that purpose. As, well the employer typically provides some maintenance, rent, interest fee loan or related operational support” (The Corporate Ethics Monitor, Volume 1, Issue 1, page 8). On-site programs can be beneficial because “having children at the workplace reduces travel time, anxiety and stress as well as providing peace of mind for parents who visit their child during a workday” (The Corporate Ethics Monitor, Volume 1, Issue 1, page 8). Furthermore, parents who work irregular or late hours such as doctors and nurses can greatly benefit from an on-site program that is open to fit their schedules, an unlikely possibility at independent childcare sites that tend to be open only during normal 9 to 5 work hours.
On-site programs may not work if the needs of the employees are so varied that they cannot all be met in one centre. They also may not be effective if the company has one ‘on-site’ facility that serves all of its employees even though they may be located in various different buildings throughout the city. For instance, if an employee lives in the west end, works downtown, and sends his/her children to the company’s ‘on-site’ program in the east end, this is not a convenient situation for him/her. In fact, it would add a lot of travel time and gas money to his/her budget, meaning that “multiple-site companies often find it difficult to justify a single location as affording equally-beneficial access for employees” (The Corporate Ethics Monitor, Volume 1, Issue 1, page 8).
In essence, a referral system might be better for companies facing these two dilemmas. “Employee referral services are less expensive alternatives to on-site daycare, which may not meet all parents’ needs” (I.I.8). For this reason, many Canadian employers are hiring “professional family issues consultants [who] in addition to providing direct counselling and referral information to parents, “offer advice to employers on planning (needs survey assistance, assessment studies, and identification of alternative options), and exploring or integrating other types of services like eldercare, emergency family care days, and concierge services as well as home-work benefits (like flex-time, flex-work, relocation policies and parental leave)” (The Corporate Ethics Monitor, Volume 1, Issue 1, page 8). These consultants provide parents with a plethora of information and advice on choosing various types of childcare and eldercare, such as “not-for-profit centres, licensed private home care, playgroups, co-op centres, drop-in centres, meals on wheels services, and nanny agencies as well as summer camps and daycare and nursery programs.” Ultimately, it is the employee who “remains responsible for choosing and paying for the child or eldercare selected” (The Corporate Ethics Monitor, Volume 1, Issue 1, page 8,9).
This type of service, in contrast to an on-site facility, is beneficial to a corporation with a wide range of employee needs, a situation commonly found in “corporations that have multiple sites, shiftworkers or employees that commute long distances” (The Corporate Ethics Monitor, Volume 1, Issue 1, page 9). Furthermore, even at corporations where needs may be similar, a referral service gives each individual family the choice to determine what type of family care services they would prefer. Some employees may prefer to have their kids close to work, others close to home. Some may want to have care during the day only, others may need night and weekend help as well. While their needs may be similar, a referral system allows these employees to choose how they would like to organize their family and work life. However, since the employee is ultimately responsible for paying for the child or eldercare they choose, a referral system may be less expensive for a corporation, but it will be more expensive for the employees who may be unable to afford the childcare they would like. Therefore, in order for the referral program to work as well as the on-site facility, it may be necessary for the employer to subsidize the cost of off-site daycare for some of its employees.
Alternately, there are some ways that parents may be able to care for their kids by themselves if they are able to arrange their work hours around the school day. For instance, “some parents need work arrangements that better balance family and work responsibilities” by using “flex-place and job sharing, flex-time and compressed work schedules, home work with full benefits and flexible relocation policy alternates” (The Corporate Ethics Monitor, Volume 1, Issue 1, page 10). These are all types of alternate work arrangements that can help put the minds of working parents at ease so they will be able to be more productive and efficient. Ultimately, the cost of either a referral service, an on-site facility and/or alternate work arrangements will be offset by the increased productivity of an employee who is not worried about his/her children and can focus on work instead.