On Friday, July 22, representatives from some of Saline County’s largest employers met at Montague’s in Marshall to discuss what has been deemed a childcare crisis across the country.
A press release says Marshall-Saline Development Corporation Executive Director Cydney Mayfield brought the Childcare Round Table together after hearing about the severe shortage of childcare options in the area.
Mayfield says, “The lack of childcare options in Saline County and Missouri is driving part of the workforce shortages we are seeing within our area. And Saline County in particular is considered a ‘childcare desert’ according to the Missouri Chamber of Commerce, and it’s impacting women disproportionally who might be staying out of the workforce because they don’t have stable or any childcare options available to them.”
According to a 2021 study done by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, over 61 percent of working parents reported missing work due to childcare issues within the past three months, and nearly 10 percent of working parents have voluntarily left a job due to childcare issues.
These statistics mirror sentiments expressed by some local employers.
President and CEO of Fitzgibbon Hospital Angy Littrell said in the past year they have seen employees leave, originally due to pandemic childcare issues, but not return because now finding childcare remains difficult and costly.
In a further examination of Marshall, there is one census track- census track 903 comprising the northwestern portion of the city- where there are zero licensed childcare providers, zero family care homes and 179 children under the age of 5. This information, provided by the Center for American Progress, indicates that there is in excess of 12 percent of the available workforce in that area of the city choosing to stay at home because no childcare can be found. Solutions to this crisis must be uncovered.
The group discussed employer options such as dependent care savings accounts that provide pre-tax savings options for childcare for employees, flexible time off and perhaps most importantly, the possibility of a pooled effort among the employers in the area to fund a daycare.
Need for care is most heavily felt among parents of children under the age of 3.
“We know this is an issue. Every study and website is pointing to the significant economic impact of people not being able to return to the workforce due to childcare. And we want to make sure our children have safe, affordable and quality childcare. This group is committed to looking for collaborative solutions to this crisis” Mayfield said regarding the outcome of the meeting.
For more information on this topic you can visit the Center for American Progress website, or the Missouri Chamber of Commerce website.
<https://www.uschamberfoundation.org/sites/default/files/EarlyEd_MISSOURI_2021_DIGITAL.pdf>
<https://childcaredeserts.org/2018/?state=MO&split=true>