The COVID-19 public health crisis has rapidly shifted how we do business. Seemingly overnight, employers adapted the workplace to keep their employees healthy and follow public health guidance. Video communication was implemented, commutes changed, and working parents faced the reality of full-time childcare and full-time work. Many businesses moved all or part of their workforce to remote work, some were forced to closed operations, and still others were deemed essential. Businesses of every size and industry have been impacted by this pandemic, so employers have had to figure out how to operate a business in an entirely new landscape.
Prior to the pandemic, limited access to affordable, high quality childcare had significant recruitment and retention costs for employers. As childcare programs have closed or are operating at limited capacity, the impact of this lack of childcare options on employers is even greater. In the fall of 2019, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation conducted a series of surveys, which led to the creation of four reports, referred to as Untapped Potential, to better understand how childcare challenges affect parents’ participation in the workforce, affect employers’ ability to recruit and retain skilled workers, and impact state economies. This study found that childcare challenges, such as breakdowns in care, affordability, or lack of access, contribute to parents postponing school and training programs, forgoing promotions because of schedule changes, and sometimes leaving the workforce altogether. In the four states studied, these childcare issues resulted in anywhere from $479 million to $3.47 billion in estimated annual losses for their economies, with specific direct and indirect impact to employers in those states. These losses were significant to families, employers, and states when economies were strong and unemployment was low.
Employers have a leadership opportunity to demonstrate that childcare supports, through a combination of public and private investments, are good for our businesses, our communities, and our families.
In June and July of 2020, the Chamber Foundation surveyed employers from across the country of every size and industry to understand the impact that childcare has on businesses' ability to return to work.
