Examples of Work/Family Options Based on Survey Results
| Survey Results | Option | Pros | Cons | Cost |
|
Employees need flexibility in their work schedules to allow them to take care of child care and eldercare responsibilities. |
Alternative Work Schedule | Reduces employee stress and unscheduled leave; eliminates tardiness, increases productivity and improves employee morale. | May face resistance from supervisors. Opportunities for overtime may be reduced. Hard to implement for shift work. Different timekeeping measures may be instituted, such as signing in or punching clock. | Nothing. |
| Sick leave is permitted only when the employee is sick, not when family members are ill or need to go to a doctor’s appointment. Employer may claim sick leave abuse when it is not. | Change leave policy to permit use of sick leave to care for family members or to take to the doctor. Also, personal leave days in addition to vacation and holidays to be used at employees’ discretion. | Enables employees to tell the truth, rather than lie about their absences. Decreases grievances and increases employee morale. | None. | Under this policy, the employee could use more sick leave days than he/she would for his/her own illness. Therefore, if the employer does not pay for unused sick leave when an employee leaves, the employer will assume some costs. Cost would be the estimated number of additional days used times average pay, plus the cost of temporary replacement, if required. |
| Employees need to care for family member who is very ill or dying. | Telephone access | Employees are able to take care of necessary business without being away from work. | None. | Nothing. |
| Employees do not know where to get the child care or eldercare services they need. Members spend a lot of time during the day trying to find services. Resource and referral | Resource and referral service. | Makes existing services more accessible to families. Saves employee time in calling around for services and thereby increases productivity. Works well for multi-site employers. Program also can conduct seminars, set up care fairs and provide written materials. | If the resource and referral service is not required to stimulate services where there are gaps, the system is limited by the inadequacies of the current supply. Also, the union and/or employer must be committed to periodically publicize the availability of the service or it may be underutilized. | Rates are based on usage. Can be moderately expensive depending on percentage of employees using the service. However, if the EAP program can provide the service, it may be less expensive. |
| EAP | Allows employees to identify and resolve their problems through counseling, assessment, and referral to appropriate organization that may be of assistance. Often provides for family consultations. | Without gerontologists or child development specialists on staff, counseling may be useless. | No additional cost if EAP already provides this service. | |
| Employees need financial help. | DCAP | Offers employees the advantage of tax savings. | See discussion on Dependent Care Assistance Programs in the Work/Family options section for disadvantages to members. | Some initial administrative cost and maintenance, but more than offset by savings on Social Security tax. |
| Voucher and/or vendor program. | Does not require capital investment, start-up costs, or management responsibility. It could be tax deductible to the employer if it meets certain IRS requirements. There is no liability to employer. Also: increased morale, productivity, recruitment and retention. | If community-based care is unavailable or of poor quality, vouchers alone will not solve these problems. Employees must use selected vendors. Employees can be turned away when slots are filled. | Can be costly depending on the employer’s contribution. |
