Work and family benefits are the business of business, a panel of top personnel executives told an annual gathering of human resource managers Wednesday.
”The revolution of labor force composition, in which 55 percent of all women work and more than half of all mothers with children under the age of 1 year are employed, makes work and family benefits critical to our future success to attract, retain and develop employees,” said Lyman Missimer Jr., head of human resources for International Business Machines Corp. in Chicago. Missimer told the group, the Human Resources Management Association of Chicago, that because of the ”increasing proportion of women in the work force and a projected shortage of skilled workers,” IBM instituted a child-care referral program in 1985. The program has been used by 32,500 employees to place about 37,000 children in day-care. The referral service is paid for by IBM; employees pay for the child care.
”IBM also puts seed money into communities to help get quality child-care programs started,” he said.
Child care is not only an issue in corporate America, but also in Congress. On Friday, U.S. Rep. William Lipinski (D., Ill.) plans to introduce legislation that would give a $2,000-per-child tax credit to businesses that provide day-care at or near their workplaces.
Lipinski says cost is a ”critical” barrier to employer-provided day-care. Tim Hansen, Lipinski`s legislative aide, said the bill has Republican and Democrat sponsorship. ”It`s hard to tell how it will fare, but it is an issue that needs attention in view of the upcoming labor shortage,” he said. The measure will first go to House Ways and Means Committee.
JoAnne Brandes, a labor and employment lawyer, told the human resource professionals meeting in Chicago that the on-site Johnson Wax Child Care Center in Racine, Wis., which opened in 1985, has helped the firm recruit employees.
”We measure our success in positive feedback from users, high enrollment and positive reaction from job candidates-it`s a great recruiting tool,”
Brandes said.
The center, partially subsidized by the company, serves 110 children. Parents pay $12 a day. ”We also have a kindergarten, before and after school care and a summer camp for children`s employees,” she said.
As for liability, the top concern among employers, the lawyer advised biting the bullet. ”A corporation with any involvement in child care cannot free itself from liability,” she said, ”but that shouldn`t be a reason not to be involved. You can minimize risks by having quality child care and well- paid teachers.”
In 1988, Arthur Andersen & Co. had a 5 percent higher turnover among female employees than for men, Kathy Gallo, director of human resources, told the group. ”That`s too high,” Gallo said. ”That`s too much talent to lose. We have to do something to turn it around.”
The firm has instituted benefits that include paid pregnancy disability leave, unpaid parental leave for one year, child- and elder-care referrals and flexible work schedules for managers.
