Child Care Options for Law Firms
| Publication year | 1987 |
| Pages | 71 |
1987, January, Pg. 71. Child Care Options for Law Firms
Child care has become a concern not only of mom and dad, but of the employer as well. Mothers, the traditional caretakers, are joining the work force in rapidly increasing numbers. In 1984, 60.5 percent of all women with children under the age of eighteen worked outside of the home.(fn1) In 1986, 70 percent of all mothers with school-aged children were employed. Moreover, the number of single-parent families continues to grow and is expected to be at the 50 percent level within four years.
The inevitable conflicts between work and home responsibilities have attracted the attention and response of employers. Nationally, thousands of companies help with their employees' child care in a variety of ways, including modified work schedules, pre-tax benefit plans, subsidies or voucher benefits, referral services, educational programs, on-site care, third-party contracts for care and after school or summer care. These are programs a law firm can investigate to provide attractive beneifts to its employees and to become more competitive in recruiting the best job candidates.
Child care benefits not only aid employees with children, but their long-suffering co-workers as well. The advantages enjoyed by the employer include increased employee productivity, decreased tardiness and absenteeism, improved loyalty, lower turnover, decreased stress, higher morale, recruitment leverage with potential employees and a stronger public image in the community. This article summarizes many of the benefits and programs that can be provided to law firm employees, some at little or no cost to the employer.
Assistance in meeting child care needs can be as simple as reviewing employee personnel policies. Consider allowing flexible time schedules or part-time and job-sharing options for working parents. Many employers have policies granting parental leave to care for newborn or adopted children on a paid or unpaid basis. Existing personal or sick leave benefits could be used for broader purposes, such as caring for sick children. This option would allow fathers to stay home without creating a separate category of paternity leave.
Most working parents are familiar with the child care expense credit under § 21 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 as amended ("Code"), which allows a limited tax credit for some child care expenses. However, the Code also contains less well-known sections which permits employers to assist with child care needs. The Tax Reform Act of 1986 will not affect any of these Code sections.
The cafeteria benefit plan allows employees to choose from a menu of benefits offered by the employer, picking the benefits they need, and foregoing or cutting back on benefits that are less...
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