Happy Tuesday HR friends!👋

We’ve had a bit of a spring (well early Summer) clean: hope you like it! 🧹

We’ll have some more changes rolling out in the next few weeks so stay tuned and we can’t wait to make the newsletter better than ever for you all!

In today’s edition we’re pondering: are we doing enough with childcare benefits to keep the parents in our teams happy?🧠 

Have a great rest of the week team, and we’ll have more HR inspiration for your inbox very soon!

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🚦Coming up

In today’s edition

👶 The Childcare Crisis: Your Retention Problem in Disguise | Why supporting working parents is no longer optional (and how to make the business case)

🛋️ The Break Room: Where does your company stand on childcare support? Vote in our poll!

📚 Human Readsources: Tesla's surprising DEI strategy shift, the continued decline of remote work opportunities, and how job market fragmentation is changing hiring.

✨New look (who dis?)

The spring clean was longggg overdue…

📱Better mobile layout and spacing

👓 Improved accessibility (colors and fonts) and readability

🗓️ New schedule. Every Tuesday morning (10am EST/ 7am PST) with the occasional bonus Friday edition!

💭Opening thoughts

Parents have it easy right?

Did you know that 51% of Americans live in childcare deserts, with nearly one-quarter of women leaving their jobs during their first year of motherhood? This isn't just a personal challenge for your employees—it's silently undermining your retention strategy.

Companies winning the talent war recognize that childcare support is no longer optional but a strategic advantage that directly impacts productivity, engagement, and loyalty. The competitive edge belongs to organizations willing to address this fundamental need.

HR leaders can transform childcare challenges into retention victories by implementing targeted support programs that acknowledge the diverse needs of working parents.

Your approach to this issue will define your employer brand in an increasingly competitive market.

For easy reading

Today’s edition is presented by

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🧠Let’s unpick this

👶Childcare Crisis: The Hidden Retention Killer

The childcare crisis has officially moved from the "personal problems" column to the "business critical" one. With nearly half of working parents facing insufficient childcare options, this isn't just affecting your employees' home lives—it's destroying your retention rates, hampering productivity, and making recruitment a nightmare.

Those return-to-office mandates? They're colliding head-on with a nationwide childcare shortage that's forcing your talent to make impossible choices.

According to HR Dive, "employers that offer child care benefits see a 60% reduction in absenteeism and a 30% decrease in turnover."

Child care benefits pay for themselves, especially when you consider that 64% of Gen Z workers rank childcare benefits in their top three reasons for staying with an employer.

Smart HR leaders are getting creative with solutions that work for both business and employees.

Monthly stipends (like Fast Retailing's $1,000/month for children up to 6.5 years), backup care programs, and flexible work arrangements are proving more effective than one-size-fits-all approaches.

With budgets tightening, key benefits like childcare are where your company can really stand out to working parents.

You can read more at...

🔗 Employers Step In as Child Care Deserts Strain Working Parents (HR Dive)

🔗 Employer-Provided Child Care Benefits Reduce Turnover, Attract Top Talent (Employee Benefit News)

🔗 Child Care Benefits Yield 425% ROI, Boost Retention and Morale (HR Dive)

👀Too long didn’t read

TLDR

Childcare isn't just your employees' problem anymore—it's a business crisis affecting retention, productivity, and recruitment with ROI-positive solutions ranging from stipends to backup care programs. Survey your parents, build your business case, and watch your retention rates thank you.

Today’s edition is also presented by

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🎬Lights, camera, action!

Takeaway and try

📊 Survey your working parents about their specific childcare challenges, then use this data to build a compelling business case showing leadership how childcare benefits could improve your company's retention rates.

💰 Consider implementing a monthly childcare stipend—even a modest amount can provide meaningful relief and signal to employees that you understand their struggles.

🧩 Explore backup care programs that employees can access when regular childcare arrangements fall through; these emergency solutions prevent last-minute absences and reduce stress.

⏱️ Evaluate your flexible work policies through the lens of working parents—sometimes adjustable hours or hybrid arrangements can solve childcare gaps without requiring new benefits.

🔄 Track retention metrics specifically for working parents before and after implementing childcare support; showing a 30% decrease in turnover makes future investments much easier to justify.

☕The break room

What’s your take?

📚Additional reading

Human Readsources

🌈 Tesla's DEI Journey Falters Under Musk's Rhetoric (HR Brew) - Tesla shifts DEI stance as Musk criticizes "wokeness."

🏢 Remote Work Decline Threatens Talent Acquisition Strategies (HR Dive) - Employers reducing remote work despite talent acquisition benefits.

💼 U.S. Job Market Splits Between Desk and Front-line Workers (HR Dive) - Job market fragmentation: desk jobs rise, hourly roles decline

That’s it for this week.

Thanks for reading to the end and we hope today’s edition sparked some new ideas for your workplace! 🧠

We know you’re super busy and really appreciate you saving some room for us in your inbox 😀