DATA: Why Child Care Solutions Will Fill the Workforce Gap

It is no surprise households increasingly need two incomes to afford the cost of living with near stagnant wage growth,[i] and the rising cost of housing,[ii] education and tuition debt,[iii] raising children,[iv] and healthcare.[v]

Luckily in Utah, there is a workforce gap that needs to be filled.[vi] However, if Utahns want to raise a family, they’ll soon find out the cost of child care discourages full workforce participation by both parents, even if both are willing. In fact, 50% of Utah families with children under 6 have both parents in the workforce. [vii]

While the government steps in to help the most low-income, most families don’t qualify for subsidies and can pay up to 30% of their income on child care. Infant care in particular is 53% more expensive than college tuition.[viii]

Where the opportunity lies:

Government covers 39% of the cost of child care.
Parents shoulder 60%.
Businesses currently cover 1%, yet can benefit from the labor child care provides.[ix]

30% of Utah parents have had to cut back on work hours because of unmet child care needs.[x]
44% of Utah parents surveyed said they would utilize child care to work more or continue their education.[xi]

A lack of child care costs businesses money:

U.S. businesses lose $4.4 billion annually due to employee absenteeism as the result of childcare breakdowns.
U.S. businesses lose $4 billion annually due to loss of productivity as the result of childcare breakdowns [xii]

Providing child care solutions can recoup the costs of attrition and lost productivity:

When companies provide childcare, employee absences decrease by up to 30% and job turnover declines by as much as 60%.[xiii]
83% of millennials say that they would leave their jobs for one with more family-friendly benefits.[xiv]

For Utah businesses, high-quality childcare is a smart investment. It supports and attracts the workforce of today, while ensuring the development and success of the workforce of tomorrow. Access to high-quality, affordable childcare is critical to a healthy, prosperous economy.

Note: This post is available as a UC3 White Paper. Email marin@UC3.care for access.

End Notes

[i] https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/economy/news/2017/09/12/438778/new-census-data-show-household-incomes- rising-share-going-middle-class-record-low/

[ii] https://gardner.utah.edu/wp-content/uploads/May2018HousingReport.pdf

[iii] https://www.sltrib.com/news/education/2018/10/15/utahs-colleges-hike/

https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/a8a0/39525cbbc312c379cb423ba0d54eab501e29.pdf

[iv] https://fns-prod.azureedge.net/sites/default/files/crc2015_March2017_0.pdf

[v] https://www.epi.org/publication/health-care-report/

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2661579

[vi] https://jobs.utah.gov/wi/pubs/reports/difficultfilljobstudy.pdf