Family Friendly Policies

• Contribution to Local Child Care Programs - You can provide financial or in-kind contributions to a new or existing child care program that your employees are using. Contributions can include cash, equipment, and/or training fees for the professional development of staff. Contributions made to specific programs that employees use help to enhance reliable, quality child care and offer you good public relations without a large cost.

• Back-up Child Care - For parents whose regular child care arrangements have broken down or for other emergencies, the employer may create a back-up program on-site, reserve slots in a community-based program, or arrange for caregivers to care for children in their own homes. Companies report this option to have limited costs and direct payback in reduced absenteeism.

• Flextime - Work schedules, within limits set by management, that enable an employee to determine when their regular workday begins and ends, yet the total hours worked each day remain the same. Flextime may include specific hours when all employees are expected to be in the office.

• Job Sharing - Two employees voluntarily share the responsibilities of one full-time job, while salary and benefits are pro-rated. Example: 50/50 or 60/40 split or 60/60 where one day of overlap occurs.

• Compressed Work Week - A work schedule that compresses the standard 8-hour day/5-day workweek into fewer, longer days, typically 40 hours worked in 4 days, or 80 hours spread out over 9 days.

• Part-time Schedules - Working less than 40 hours per week which will impact salary and benefits eligibility.

• Extended Maternity/Paternity (Parental) Leave - A policy that allows mothers or fathers to take time off beyond that allowed by the Family and Medical Leave Act. This extended leave may or may not be paid and the employer may require employees to use up all of their vacation or sick time before this leave may be taken.

• Telecommuting - An arrangement in which an employee works at a location other than the normal worksite, e.g. home or a satellite office. This may occur on a regular basis or on an as-needed, occasional basis.