SEPTEMBER 2007: AROUND THE STATE, HELP DESK
How to assess offering a childcare benefit
IT’S A COMPETITIVE WORKPLACE out there and attracting and
retaining valuable employees is no easy feat. Offering
childcare options is one of the ways employers can increase
their appeal to potential workers.
Ty Durekas, CEO of San Francisco-based Children’s
Creative Learning Centers, a division of Portland-based
Knowledge Learning Corp., says companies have a couple of
options when it comes to establishing childcare. Opening up a
daycare center within company headquarters isn’t a choice
for many employers, but neither is it the only way to offer a
childcare benefit.
After completing a needs assessment and determining what type
of childcare employees would most like — infants and
young children or summer programs to name a few — Durekas
encourages employers to look at the availability of space.
If creating onsite space isn’t possible, companies
should broaden their search to about a mile outside of the
office, looking for other childcare providers that could become
potential partners.
Many companies choose to pool resources with a local provider
such as CCLC or join a consortium center rather than build
their own onsite care facilities.
“At a consortium center, employers share expenses for
high-quality care,” says Durekas.
Durekas estimates that a 10,000 square-foot facility serving
100 children, in a company of about 2,000 employees, would cost
about $2 million to build from scratch. That price tag could
drop by half if space is found in another building such as a
consortium center.
Another option for daycare is sponsorship. The federal
government, the City of Portland and Metro sponsor the four
sites of the Joyful Noise Child Development Center. In a
sponsorship, children of the sponsor’s employees are
given priority for placement.
Joyful Noise director Heidi Anderson says being able to have
one’s children in close proximity is a huge benefit to
employees.
In the end providing childcare demonstrates the
company’s understanding of their workforce and their
needs. Childcare can help attract and retain employees, says
Durekas.
“It drives hiring,” he says. “It’s a
fantastic tool employees look for.”
Sometimes what’s best for Junior is also best for the
boss.
COLLEEN MORAN
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