The Benefits Of Having Onsite Daycare Commerce Essay Example

ensuring that their business can benefit from the best contributions of their employees. Productive workers result in satisfied customers, helping businesses maintain a competitive edge in the market. Conversely, employee absenteeism, low morale, apathy, and turnover lead to significant costs for employers. However, when employees show commitment, high morale, enthusiasm and a personal investment in their work it brings substantial benefits for both employers and their customers.

The support for workplace friendly policies has a significant impact on the financial performance of all businesses. Specifically, when businesses invest in childcare programs, it directly affects their profitability. Additionally, implementing a quality childcare program can also contribute to better community relations, serving as a marketing tool. Supporting childcare programs brings immediate benefits such as increased employee dedication, productivity, motivation, and reduces turnover and absenteeism rates.

According to Emlen and Koren (1984), the approximate cost of absenteeism due to child attention issues is approximately eight to nine days annually. The type of assistance you offer should be based on your company's size and employees' traits. Providing support for your workforce's childcare requirements is a wise business decision. It is crucial to recognize that there isn't a universal solution for every circumstance.

Assessing its needs and available local resources is crucial for every business in implementing a childcare program. When employers demonstrate support for their employees' family lives, job satisfaction increases, loyalty towards the company grows, commitment to success strengthens, and retention rates improve. Promoting family-friendly policies at work is an investment that undeniably impacts overall business performance. Moreover, West View has the chance to introduce a flexible work schedule.

Instead of working a regular five-day week, employees modify their arrival and departure

times to accommodate their individual needs. When implementing dependent care programs, an employer must carefully assess the needs of its workforce and its own capability to meet those needs. West View is planning to conduct a 12-step evaluation of all aspects involved in establishing a child care center. As a first step, West View needs to assess the interest among employees in such a program.

Secondly, the article suggests creating a management employee commission to help plan the program or service. This commission can help increase the sense of ownership among employees and provide a platform for them to contribute input on the design elements of the plan or service. (Beierlein, J. G., & Van Horn, J.)

E. 1991). The third step West View needs to take is to identify plan characteristics. The plan characteristics chosen should be based on information obtained from the needs assessment, including the following: number of children accommodated, level of quality, amount of subsidy, hours of operation, staffing patterns, food service, age groups, group sizes, and child to staff ratios. Furthermore, West View will create an educational plan. Decisions about the plan should include the following: philosophy; level of quality; educational goals for the staff, including initial qualifications and ongoing training; and curriculum activities for the different ages of children.

Fifth, West View needs to make a decision regarding the type of installation they want - whether it will be a brand new construction or a redevelopment of an existing installation. They can hire an architect to work together with a child care specialist in order to create detailed designs and supervise the construction or renovation process. Both advisors play a vital role

in planning a successful facility. The next step for West View, sixth overall, is choosing the site where the child care center will be located. Employer-sponsored child care centers are typically placed near the workplace; however, they may also be situated away from the sponsoring company but still close to the work site.

When selecting and designing a site, certain criteria should be considered. These criteria include: approximately 60 to 100 square feet of indoor space per child, preferably on the ground floor; about 75 to 100 square feet of outdoor space; and having a legal structure. Creating a separate legal structure specifically for the program allows West View, the employer, to have some distance from the program and reduces liability exposure. The center can be part of the corporation or a unit within a department, wholly owned subsidiary, or a separate corporation (for profit or not-for-profit). Alternatively, the corporation can contract out the operation of an in-house center to an external child care operator.

Beierlein and Van Horn (1991) suggest that the employer should align the level of control or liability with their chosen legal framework. The employer has the option to directly control different aspects of the plan, such as quality. However, it is crucial to acknowledge that increased control by the employer also leads to higher potential liability.

The operator of a child care center has the main responsibility for accountability. They should involve parents in overseeing management through a non-profit parents association. If the center is classified as non-profit, it may be eligible for tax-exempt status under section 501c3 of the Internal Revenue Service code. This enables the program to receive tax-deductible contributions and

designated grants. The parents association will be in charge of provider contracts and ensuring safety and quality in childcare.

The 8th measure involves assessing the initial expenses associated with establishing the center, which include wages and benefits for personnel involved in setting up the facility or requiring training, as well as licensing fees and other necessary permits. Additionally, costs for equipment, new construction per square foot, space requirements per child, parking and playground space, and marketing expenses such as promotional materials, meetings, newsletters, and consultation and design fees must be considered. In the beginning stages of the program, operating losses may occur due to inadequate enrollment. These losses can be considered part of the start-up costs. The operating budget should encompass expenses like salaries for educational and administrative staff, benefits, staff training, facility and grounds management and maintenance, equipment and supplies, insurance, transportation, food service, advertising, reserves for replacements, and various other expenditures. A center that provides high-quality service could potentially allocate 70 to 80 percent of its income towards payroll, which represents the largest budget expenditure.

The person responsible for preparing monthly and one-year running budgets for the kid attention industry should have a good understanding of the industry. These budgets should take into account factors such as registration premises and bad debt premises. Additionally, the budgets must accurately reflect the true costs involved. It is important to conduct a cost/benefit analysis that compares the initial start-up costs and ongoing operating costs with the advantages of enlisting, absenteeism, productivity, and turnover that will be provided by either an on-site or off-site centre. (Beierlein, J. G., & Van Horn, J.)

E. 1991). Step nine involves implementing a marketing

strategy. This strategy may include notifying employees, distributing booklets, organizing open house tours for parents who may be changing child care agreements, and announcing a center opening date in the fall. It is recommended to launch a promotional campaign to attract employees quickly, so that the center can operate cost-effectively as soon as possible.

The tenth step is disposal. In a child care center, administrative duties include the following: implementing staff policies and procedures, managing admissions and planning curriculum and activities, keeping records on finances, children, and management decisions, overseeing operations, and handling employer center relations, community relations, and promotion. It is essential to prepare a developmentally appropriate educational curriculum that tailors daily activities to the needs of individual children while ensuring quality. The eleventh step would be obtaining a license.

West View must obtain all necessary licenses and permits from the province in order to open and maintain the center. The final step, which is the twelfth, involves evaluating the plan. This evaluation process assesses how well the child care program meets its specified goals and determines if these goals are being achieved in a cost-effective manner. Regular evaluations can identify areas of concern and assist decision-makers in improving program quality and efficiency. To effectively plan and implement this project, a committee consisting of West View employees with an interest in the matter was established. The committee comprised members from senior management as well as various departments including human resources, regulation, legal, risk management, research, and administration.

(Thayer, C. Thomas 1993). The goal of West View is to provide high-quality care and a learning environment for children. The first step was to assess the current need for

child care.

The HR department compiled data on the bing workforce's demographics and future trends. The data revealed that most employees in the main offices were married and in their child-rearing years, and there was a rapid increase in the number of female employees joining the staff. The risk management department assessed its records to determine the potential number of children eligible for childcare. An examination of daycare facilities within an eight-mile radius identified ten existing centers, leading the West View planning group to believe that there may not be enough demand to support an additional facility. On-site visits to each center disclosed that nearly all centers were either at capacity or close to it and had waitlists for admissions.

The range of facility designs varied from renovated residential constructions to traditional schoolhouse settings. The curriculum, activities, and staffing also varied from lively drama centers to highly structured learning centers. The demographic information of the West View area, combined with the study of existing nearby centers, indicated that there is potential for another facility in the market. To further validate this assumption and gather basic information on the child care needs, preferences, and expectations of staff members, a survey was distributed to the central offices' employees.

The study questionnaire revealed that West View had expressed its willingness to provide day care services, depending on feasibility. However, it was unable to financially support the construction or operation of a facility, or offer subsidies for employee fees. The results of the survey clearly showed a high demand and necessity for day care services, as nearly every employee with preschool-aged children expressed interest in on-site care. These employees were committed to

enrolling their children in the facility, contingent upon the quality of care provided and associated costs. While some respondents were strongly in favor of the idea, they were unable to transfer their children from their current day care arrangements. The study also highlighted that more than a quarter of enrolled children would be infants.

Research has highlighted the need for a flexible building design in day care to accommodate different age groups. However, due to the difficulty and costs of transportation, providing after-school care for young children was not considered feasible. Nonetheless, it seemed possible to offer day camp services for young children during school vacations and summers. To ensure the success of the day care project, the planners believed that West View staff should create an appropriate solicitation instrument and handle all business considerations. One option could be a shared pool center, where multiple employers collaborate on an industrial or geographic basis to pool their resources in building and/or operating a child care center.

Consortium members typically contribute to the initial costs and, in exchange, receive priority registration for their employees' children. The level of control that a corporate pool member desires regarding the childcare program may have implications for corporate liability. A new nonprofit organization could be established to provide the childcare service, and participating corporations may offer board members for this organization if they so choose. In some instances, a certain number of slots are reserved for each company, while in other cases, arrangements for pool members are less formal. Member corporations may also opt to subsidize their employees' fees through a voucher or reimbursement plan.

Operating costs for pool centres are typically funded through

a combination of parent fees and contributions from employers. The advantages of using a pool centre include: resource sharing, liability sharing, and cost sharing. Additionally, the large size of the combined labour force helps protect the centre from long-term under registration, and even small employers can participate. However, there are also disadvantages to using a pool centre. These include potential reductions in recruitment and public relations value, the limited number of employees that can be accommodated from each participating company, which may reduce the management value, and the potential for complicated negotiations among companies.

Dependent Care Assistance Plans for child care come in three primary forms. First, employers can contribute funds to individual accounts for employees to help offset the costs of child care in addition to their current salary and benefits. Second, there is a voluntary salary reduction program in which both the employer and employee agree to reduce the employee's income by a certain amount, up to $5,000 per year of pre-tax earnings. This reduced income is then placed in a flexible spending account to be used for eligible child care expenses. Finally, there may be a combination of both approaches.

The allowable kid attention services for a dependent care assistance plan include care at a kid attention centre, at the parent's place, or at another person's place for kids under 15 years old. If the care is provided at another person's place or a kid attention centre, it must be registered or licensed. One major advantage of Dependent Care Assistance Plans is the reduction of tax liability for both the employer and employee. Employers are not required to pay Social Security or unemployment taxes

on the funds contributed to the plan, and employees are exempt from federal and Social Security taxes on their salary contribution. The IRS considers Dependent Care Assistance Plans as a benefit and therefore, it is not considered as part of the employee's taxable income, as long as the employer qualifies as a Dependent Care Assistance Program provider according to Section 129 of the Internal Revenue Code. Other Dependent Care Assistance Plans also ensure that funds are available to cover employees' child care expenses.

The program is an effective public relations tool, enhances employee relations, and enables employers to plan expenses. However, the main drawback is that the "use-it-or-lose-it" policy may negatively affect employee morale. Businesses can also opt for the Reimbursement system, where employees can select the childcare option that best suits their needs (such as a childcare center, in-home daycare, or after-school program) and receive reimbursement from the company for a portion of the expenses. Alternatively, in a Voucher system, employers establish contracts with childcare providers or centers in the community to offer services to their employees.

The use of a verifier or reimbursement system allows parents to receive financial assistance for all or some of their child care expenses. The parents can then use these verifiers to pay for child care services through their employer. This system is preferred by employees because it gives them the ability to choose a child care agency that meets their personal needs, such as location, operating hours, and quality of care. Additionally, the verifier or reimbursement program provides employees with flexibility in meeting their child care demands by offering a variety of options and allowing them to make their

own arrangements. This system has several advantages, including low start-up costs, the majority of funds going towards child care services, suitability for employers with multiple locations or varying workforce sizes, a wide range of choices for parents, service for children of different age groups, minimal employer liability, no direct involvement in the child care business, and utilization of existing community resources. However, there are some disadvantages to using a verifier or reimbursement system. These include limited visibility for the company, less effectiveness as a recruitment tool compared to direct services, potential mismatch between child care availability and employees' work schedules, and only the cost of care being directly affected.

In communities with various challenges in providing quality childcare, limited visibility, or inadequate supply, implementing a narrow solution may not be effective. The company could end up supporting a low-quality childcare program, which could result in liability issues. West View should consider the Purchase of Space Program, where the employer secures a specific number of spots in a local childcare program.

Parent fees may cover most or all of the cost of any infinites used, but the company typically covers all or a part of the cost of the fresh infinites so that the plan can afford to maintain the infinites open for the company. (Gebeke, D., Jacobson, S., McCaul, H. May 1997).

The Discount Program is where the employer arranges for employees to hold a fee lower than that typically charged. An employer can do this agreement with a individual kid attention plan or several plans.

The company usually covers the difference in fees through a fiscal aspect of the plan. For plans that rely on the employer's support,

there might be a discount greater than the employer's contribution. However, caution should be exercised as these plans may not be fully satisfactory due to their low quality. Both options ensure employees have consistent and reliable access to child care services, potentially at a reduced cost.

Advantages of using the price reduction plan or purchase plan include: no need for capital investment or startup costs, affordable child care, minimal management and administrative responsibilities. This plan is suitable for small companies with few employees as well as large companies with smaller units. Additional spaces can be purchased as more employees request the discount, and it enhances public relations by demonstrating the company's support for existing community programs. However, the drawbacks of this plan are that it could be seen as negative public relations by endorsing certain child care providers in the local community unfairly. West View prefers to have an on-site center.

Employers typically cover all start-up expenses, any initial losses incurred during the early stages of the center before it is fully enrolled, and a portion of ongoing operational costs. The remaining operating expenses of the center are covered by fees paid by parents. An on-site center can be sponsored by either an employer or a labor union at the workplace or at another location. The center may be operated by the employer or a non-profit or for-profit child care provider. These centers offer full-day care for infants as young as six weeks old up to five-year-old prekindergarten children. (Bergmann R Barbara, Helburn Wiggans Suzanne 2003).

Some centers also provide care for school-age children before and after school if transportation is available and the schools are nearby, during

school vacations, and throughout the summer. These centers can also offer emergency or drop-in care for employees who typically use other child care arrangements but have had their arrangements fall through for the day. Normally, centers operate between 6:30 A.M. and 6:30 P.M., although employer-sponsored centers may sometimes be open in the evenings, on weekends, and on legal holidays to meet employee needs.

The advantages of having an on-site center are numerous: it enhances employees' work quality and productivity by alleviating their concerns about their children while they are working; it allows parents to spend time with their kids throughout the day, like during meals or breaks; it attracts and keeps employees; it boosts morale by demonstrating the employer's care for its employees. Additionally, it reduces absenteeism and lateness resulting from unreliable child care arrangements. Nevertheless, a significant challenge to overcome is that start-up support needs to be provided, which may require a larger investment than other alternatives.

Courses of Action

A pool center is an arrangement where several employers join forces on an industrial or geographic basis to combine their resources in constructing and/or operating a child care center.

Consortium members typically contribute to start-up costs and, in return, their employees' children are given priority registration. The level of control that a corporate pool member desires to have over the childcare program could potentially impact corporate liability. To provide childcare services, a new non-profit agency may be established, and participating corporations may appoint board members for the agency if they choose to do so. Occasionally, a specific number of slots are reserved for each company, while in other cases, arrangements for pool members are less formal.

Member corporations have

the option to subsidize their employees' fees through a verifier or reimbursement plan. However, operating costs are typically funded through a combination of parent fees and contributions from employers. The benefits of the pool center include shared resources, liability, and costs, as well as the advantage of having a large combined labor force which protects the center from long-term under-registration. Even small employers have the opportunity to participate. When it comes to an on-site daycare center, employers usually cover all start-up costs, any operational losses in the early stages before full enrollment, and a portion of ongoing operational expenses. The remaining operating expenses are covered by parent fees.

An employer or brotherhood-sponsored on-site centre is located at the workplace or another location. It can be operated by the employer, a non-profit or for-profit childcare provider. These centres provide full-day care for infants as young as six weeks old up to five-year-old prekindergarten children. Some centres also offer care for school-age children before and after school, during school vacations, and throughout the summer if transportation is available and schools are nearby (Gebeke, D., Jacobson, S., McCaul, H. May 1997). Additionally, these centres may offer emergency or drop-in care for employees who typically have other childcare arrangements but encounter unexpected issues for the day.

Usually, centers operate from 6:30 A.M. to 6:30 P.M., but employer-sponsored centers may be open in evenings, weekends, and holidays to fulfill employee needs.

Recommendation

The clear advantages of having an on-site center are that it enhances employees' work quality and productivity by alleviating their worries about their children while they are working. It also allows parents to spend time with their children throughout the day, such

as during meals or breaks. Moreover, it attracts and retains employees and boosts morale by demonstrating that the employer cares about their well-being. Lastly, it reduces absenteeism and lateness stemming from unreliable childcare arrangements.

When a concern is supportive of child care plans, it is a clear financial investment.

Implementation

West View will carefully assess the needs of its workforce and its own capacity to meet those needs when implementing dependent care initiatives. The next step will be establishing a management employee committee to help plan the program or service, followed by promoting the idea to all employees to inform them of the benefits of having an on-site daycare center.

Conclusion

Typically, most company presidents would hesitate when presented with the cost of a daycare center. However, the long-term investment in employees' well-being is worth every dollar spent.