Lessons From One Employer’s Legacy Onsite Child Care Program

A few decades ago, herbs and spices company Frontier Co-op in Norway, Iowa, became a workplace where employees brought their kids. Many farming families worked at the company—men were often out in the field, while women started coming in to do the office work. But mothers, being the primary caregivers, didn’t know what to do with their young children.

“In order for them to work, they needed to bring the kids along with them. So they just started bringing the kids to work with them,” explained Megan Schulte, vice president of human resources at Frontier.

Fast forward 40 years, and that informal program has turned into a bona fide child care center—and a huge contributor to the company’s attraction and retention efforts.

“It’s been really, really good for us from a recruiting standpoint, and a great advantage to have for any working parents,” Schulte said.

Frontier’s child care center at its headquarters—which currently serves around 110 kids—is open from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. and supports children ages 6 weeks to 12 years. Frontier runs before- and after-school programs for kids enrolled in elementary school and works with the local school district to coordinate pickups and drop-offs. The company, which has 534 total employees—375 of whom work in its Norway, Iowa, headquarters—also runs a day camp onsite during the summer.

And it all comes at a bargain price: between $2-$3 an hour per child for employees.

“It’s about making sure that it is affordable for everybody,” Schulte said.

The benefit is available as soon as employees start, and Frontier guarantees a spot for anyone joining the organization. “When we’re going through the recruiting phase, it’s huge for us to say, ‘You can start here and you can get your kids started at our child care center next week,’ ” Schulte explained. “On the retention side, having your kids here onsite and being able to see them throughout the day and interact with them … once you have that experience, leaving that is very, very difficult.”

[See also: How to Help Workers with Child Care Struggles]

A Difference for Working Parents

In addition to its onsite center, Frontier offers subsidized offsite child care and reimbursement options for employees.

“Let’s say somebody starts with us, and they already have a child care provider that they love, or just logistically, it doesn’t make sense for them to come out here for it,” Schulte said. “We recognize that child care is a very personal decision. And we want to make sure people have options to make the best decision for their child and their needs.”

She’s seen firsthand the difference the child care options have made. “It’s really, really impactful,” said Schulte, who uses the onsite center for her three children. The assistance allows employees at Frontier to easily juggle personal and work responsibilities and not have to worry about finding quality, convenient, or affordable child care—historically an issue for parents and a common reason why parents, especially mothers, leave the workforce.

Frontier’s onsite child care has also personally made a world of difference for Schulte. When she was pregnant with her first child, thanks to the child care center, she knew exactly how she was going to manage work and her home life. “I did want a career—I didn’t want to stay at home,” she said. “Coming here to Frontier and being able to experience both, I’ve never felt at any point in time that I had to make a decision between the two of them.” Schulte, in fact, was promoted several times at Frontier while simultaneously building her family. She started at Frontier as an executive assistant in 2012.

Comparatively, Schulte said she saw her friends with children look for months and months to find suitable child care so they could continue working—often to no avail.

Now Schulte, like the other parents at Frontier, can visit her kids at the onsite center during the day or have lunch with them and even administer medicine for one of her children, who was recently diagnosed with type 1 diabetes.

“Being able to have an onsite child care and be able to go down and see them throughout the day and getting to be both a parent and having a career is such an amazing thing,” she said.

Many observers have pointed to employer child care programs as a key contributor to retention, attraction, and employee satisfaction. Research bears that out: Businesses that offer onsite child care for employees experience a 7.4 times higher retention rate and 8.9 times more loyal employees, according to the Best Place for Working Parents, a Fort Worth, Texas-based organization that recognizes employers that support working parents.

“Child care is a significant expense, and so is the time that it requires,” said Ella Washington, professor of practice at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business and founder and CEO of Ellavate Solutions, a consulting firm that focuses on inclusion, equity, and diversity.

“For mothers in the workplace, caregiving responsibilities are a significant consideration. Workplaces that don’t offer good maternity and child care benefits usually burden women to fill the gaps of most family responsibilities,” Washington said, adding that good workplace benefits must include family benefits for men to allow balance of responsibility.

While some companies offer child care benefits, it’s not common. According to SHRM’s 2024 Employee Benefits Survey, released in June, just 3% offer a subsidized child care center or program, and 2% offer a nonsubsidized child care center (company-affiliated onsite or near-site center).

Growing Interest

But interest in the benefit is growing, especially after the pandemic exacerbated child care gaps and resulted in more workers looking for employer support. Millions of working mothers left their jobs as a result of family and child care responsibilities.

A recent Care.com survey of C-suite and HR leaders found that 56% of American companies say they’re prioritizing child care benefits in 2024, up from 46% in 2023. The survey also found that 1 in 5 U.S. workers have left a job because their employer didn’t provide adequate family care benefits, and 1 in 5 say they would switch jobs for better support.

“The pandemic really set these needs on a new trajectory, and employers then were forced to recognize that this is now a workforce issue that we have, and we need to keep this at the forefront,” Schulte said. “And it also opened up workers to discuss this with their employers.”

What Employers Should Consider

For employers that may consider adding child care benefits, Schulte said communicating with employees about what they are looking for is a good first step.

“When you’re considering something like that, be open-minded with your team and their needs,” she said.

Schulte also recommended that HR and other company leaders don’t get daunted by the introduction of a child care benefit, thinking they have to create an onsite center. Stipends or reimbursements to help with expensive care are a much-appreciated benefit, as is helping working parents find available care.

“Don’t be afraid to start small with it,” she said. “Not every company can have an onsite child care program. Instead, think creatively about how they can work with their employees to ease some of the burden of child care costs or remove some of the pressures of finding a program that’s accessible in the local area. Think about flexibility. [HR leaders] need to take the time and figure out what approach is sustainable for their company, then start there and just keep growing.”