The Benefits of On-Site Childcare.

Juggling a family and job is made easier when business provide on-site childcare, and gives parents the opportunity to visit children during breaks and lunch hours.

Day after day, parents hop out of bed, grapple with diapers, feed and kids and gulp a cup of coffee before rushing to

Yet the weeks roll by as the challenges of childcare take its toll on workplace productivity, employee health and family unity. Despite the daily balancing act, many parents avoid talking to peers and supervisors, fearing that others will question their ability to leave family issues at home where they belong.

Some companies have changed all that by providing and subsidizing childcare services--among those in Alaska are BP Exploration (Alaska) Inc. and Providence Hospital.

"I think there's a movement in the United States ... about quality childcare and what the true costs of that are," said Chris Jurenka, program manager of the BP Early Learning Center.

Most government subsidies barely touch the tip of the iceberg in paying for the care of a child, she said, and full tuition at the BP learning center doesn't cover the actual costs. BP picks up the slack. In return, it gains loyalty and boosts morale.

"It helps in acquiring and retaining staff as a human resources tool," said Charlene Hudson, facilities management administrator for BP. "Performance and productivity have certainly increased and we see less sick time."

Margaret Bauer, director of the Providence Center for Child Development, agrees. When Providence got into the childcare business in the mid-'80s, the leaders "wanted to help their employees balance schedules with work and family," she said. "We had a CEO who had a vision and it happened."

Once in place, the learning center had an immediate impact, Bauer said. When employees saw that Providence valued families, they were reassured that work and family issues were taken seriously.

Balancing the Costs and Benefits

In Anchorage, BP and Providence are the only two private companies that offer full-service, employee-dedicated childcare. Providence started 16 years ago and BP opened its first facility in 1991. The Alaska Club also has a licensed daycare that serves club members at the east location, but employees can use the facility at a discount.

In the past, a few other employers offered childcare programs on a temporary basis, according to Martha Anderson, program director of the municipality's Child and Adult Care Program. Plenty of other employers like Carrs (before Safeway bought it) and the airport have also expressed interest in providing daycare services over the years, but have yet to follow through with plans to open a daycare center.

"One of the problems is that childcare is not a great money-making business," said Anderson, "so you have to look at the hidden costs of childcare issues (like sick time, productivity and morale)."

Plus, Anderson believes a company program needs to meet higher standards and expectations than other centers.

"Unless they really design and put together a high quality daycare center, parents don't want to use it," said Anderson.

Achieving a quality center takes a lot of effort and a continuous influx of money. Providence paved the way by building a first-class operation that stayed open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to accommodate families with diverse schedules. Employees paid hourly fees based on actual use.

After 15 years, however, the medical center decided to cut hours, establish a monthly tuition and alter other aspects of its program.

"They (Providence) were looking at this monumental subsidy and had to bring it down to something they could afford," said Bauer. "The subsidy grew because staff got better wages and benefits, but they never increased the hourly cost of care to employees."

Last June, the center moved to a regular workweek and reduced the hours to 6 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. It also lowered class sizes and opened space for other uses. Tuition now ranges from $600 to $700 a month for fulltime care.

The most recent license allows about 120 children on premise. The center has 80 families on a waiting list for the infant/toddler program, but has a few slots in preschool. It will open spots to people in the community when space is available.

Providence also manages the BP learning center through a contract relationship. Both centers operate on similar principles and are accredited by the National Academy of Early Childhood Programs.

Taking it Step by Step

Unlike Providence, BP took a circuitous route before landing at its own front door. The journey began in the late 1980s when the poor economy forced daycare centers to close. The company recognized the need for childcare, so it created a task force, conducted surveys and researched the market. In the beginning, it hooked up with other childcare services like the Boys and Girls Club and Childcare Connection, but found that those options failed to meet its needs.

The second step involved renovating a South Anchorage facility, funding the program and hiring Providence to run it. Despite considerable expenses, the center never met enrollment expectations. The two-mile drive made it inconvenient to most employees, so the location deterred them from using it, said Hudson.

After another round of discussion, BP decided to build a facility across the parking lot from its headquarters. Painted in natural colors and equipped with a spacious outdoor play area, it opened last year for full-time, part-time and back-up care. The service is available to BP, Alyeska Pipeline Service Co. and contract employees like those in security, housekeeping and communications. Employees pay a monthly tuition that ranges from $625 to $755 a month for full-time use.

"We have seen an increase of usage (in the new building)," said jurenka. "But even better than that, we've seen a larger participation of parents in the program. It's not unusual to see on any given day three to four parents having lunch with children or dropping in to see how things are going.

"We see especially our breast-feeding moms 10 times happier because it's just a short walk across the road to feed their children."

Right now, about 82 children are enrolled in the program.

"When you look at the total number of employees at BP, a very small percentage use the facility," said Hudson. "However, BP benefits as a whole. Staff who have children enrolled there are more productive if they know their children are well taken care of."

At both companies, the majority of employees supports the subsidized service and admires their company for tending to family issues.

In fact, Bauer intends to follow a health services trend toward looking at childcare services as less of a daycare or early learning facility and more of a family and work center. Providence and BP already present seminars, meetings and other gatherings to address parenting and family issues for all employees, but Bauer hopes to do more.

Advice for the Wary Employer

Providing a place at the work site for children to learn and play helps employees achieve a comfort level, but can make employers nervous.

While liability issues are always a concern, said Jurenka, it's the surprises and ongoing changes that make things interesting. Despite extensive surveys and research, the needs of the employees constantly change. An early childhood center needs to follow suit.

"Here (at Providence) at least and I think at BP, there is at least some flexibility for scheduling and there is a benchmark for quality," she said.

Then, of course, there's the matter of money.

"You have to understand that if you're going to provide a quality program, there's going to be a cost associated with it above and beyond revenue, especially in the start-up. And probably you're going to have to be willing to subsidize it for a number of years if not forever," said Jurenka.

For small businesses, the idea sounds intimidating at best, but leaders at a variety of companies have talked about putting together a program that could serve multiple businesses.

In Bauer's view, someone has to champion the cause in order to make it happen. Quality care takes money, time, patience and flexibility, she said, so someone has to push it over each hurdle.

"A consortium model would be an excellent idea," she said. "What you would need is the person who makes a difference."

More than anything, she added, "you would have to have buy-in."