A panel discussed ways to better support working mothers at the Rotary Club of Little Rock Tuesday. Ingeborg Initiatives and the Women's Foundation of Arkansas commissioned a report examining the state of working moms in Arkansas.
The report found that while mothers want to continue working, they face several key barriers to employment, including high childcare costs, inadequate maternal leave, and unsustainable workplace schedules.
Ingeborg Director Anna Koelsch told members of the Rotary Club of Little Rock Tuesday 69% of mothers surveyed said they couldn’t afford to keep working and pay for childcare.
“For families with two young children, the average cost of childcare per year is $17,500, which is 27% of the annual median income. That often rivals a mortgage payment, a rent payment,” Koelsch said.
The report also found new parents aren’t getting enough time away from the workplace after birth, with one in five mothers returning to work less than six weeks after giving birth.
“In many cases their bodies had not fully healed. The medical recommendation is at least six weeks after a vaginal birth and eight weeks for C-section,” Koelsch said.
“The consequences of this show up in two places; first in women's health outcomes, and second in employer retention. Mothers who are forced back to work before they’ve recovered are more likely to experience health complications, struggle with the transition, and ultimately leave the workforce altogether.”
Koelsch says the data has a clear impact on maternal health, citing research from the Arkansas Center for Health Improvement showing a large number of maternal deaths happen after birth.
“During this very delicate and fragile time, if we aren’t giving moms enough time to recover, how can we expect to improve that statistic?”
Some Central Arkansas employers are trying to tackle the problems head on.
Arkansas Childrens’ Chief People Officer and Executive Vice President Crystal Kohanke said her organization has created pathways for employees to take advantage of several types of leave programs, such as layering short-term disability insurance typically taken after birth with four weeks of paid parental bonding leave.
“I had a dad say what a gift it was to be able to spend four weeks with his baby, it was something that he wouldn’t have ever thought he’d be able to do.”
Kohanke noted Arkansas Childrens’ also runs an at-cost childcare center for employees, but the capacity of 150 doesn’t meet the need. She says over 200 families are currently on the waiting list.
Sheridan Richards is the Chief People Officer at the City of Little Rock. She says the city worked to craft a policy with the help representatives from firefighters, police officers, and public works employees in order to find a system that worked for all employees. The effort resulted in a policy available to all city employees, regardless of pay grade or department. The policy gives 12 weeks of paid leave to families who are giving birth, adopting a child, or having a child through surrogacy. The policy also includes people experiencing pregnancy loss.
“If the pregnancy doesn’t turn out the way you dream of it turning out, you can still take advantage of this benefit.”
Richards also said crafting policies that apply to all employees, and making sure all employees know about the benefits is important to the success of a new program.
“Many of our frontline employees don’t sit at a desk[...] If I find that frontline workers are not using it, then that’s a message to me that my communication is not as effective as I think it should be.”
Richards encouraged corporations to address barriers to working moms, positing a business-led coalition that could create income-based subsidized childcare.
“It makes it more affordable for those that make less, but those of us who make more can contribute more. That would make childcare accessible and it would also lower the turnover that happens with those who provide childcare, because that’s also an issue. We don’t pay those individuals what they should be paid to provide that level of care.”
The report “Holding It All Together: Working Moms and Childcare in Arkansas” is available to read now at womensfoundationarkansas.org/momsinar.
