Family-Friendly Workplace

If you're among the millions of Americans who juggle children, parents, spouse and job, a family-friendly workplace can mean a world of difference. A list of the top 100 family-friendly companies is compiled annually by Working Mother magazine (October 2001). The most recent list included six health care systems.

Only one in 10 U.S. companies polled by human resources research firm Hewitt Associates offered on- or near-site child care in 2000. Among that select minority is Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago, IL. In addition to a day care center, the hospital provides back-up care for children whose regular care has broken down, school holiday care, a summer camp and parents' night out care. This benefits a large portion of Northwestern employees, according to Jan Bultema, director of human resources, because 64 percent have children age 12 and under. To understand how important on-site day care is, just ask Lisa Morris, CCS, a clinical analyst in information technology at Baptist Health Systems, in Miami, FL, which also made the top 100 list. "In the last 22 years I've worked here, I have raised three children, ages 18, 15 and 9," said Morris. "I've utilized our day care center from the time the children were 6 weeks old until they entered kindergarten." The certified day care facility at Baptist allowed Morris to hold a management position in the health information management department for 20 years of her career. "Both the day care and my position offered me flexible schedules," she said. "I was able to go to and from the department and the day care center to breast feed, see the children, or attend whatever programs they had going on." Top-ranking Bon Secours, in Richmond, VA, also offers on-site day care. "As a company that takes care of patients and their families, the Sisters of Bon Secours believe strongly in helping employees meet the needs of their families," said Peter J. Bernard, CEO. "Our recent celebration of another Bon Secours child care center is another example of our commitment to employees and their families." Of course, child care services alone don't provide the assistance needed to juggle job and home life responsibilities. "I'm a single parent with 7-year-old triplets," said Rose Marchese-Jacobs, a medical transcriptionist at Presbyterian Hospital, in Charlotte, NC, in the Novant Health System. "Working was not an option for me." But thanks to the hospital, telecommuting was an option; and she's been at it for the past three years. "I'm glad I didn't have to make a choice between working full-time and taking care of my children," she said. "I can do both." Telecommuting offers her the ability to be available to her children when they come home from school, while affording her the flexibility to work hours at her convenience. Leigh Anne Frame, a manager at BryanLGH, in Lincoln, NE, said this type of arrangement benefits her staff as well. "We currently have 30 transcriptionists working from their home," she said. Many opted to telecommute because they had children at home, and several cared for elderly parents as well. Some organizations still have the old mindset that a worker with too many responsibilities at home will be less attentive to those of the workplace. Working Mother considered opportunity for advancement in its ranking to address this concern. Northwestern was lauded for providing career opportunities to many of its female staff members who are juggling career and family. In fact, 78 percent of the total staff are women, and females make up 72 percent of the top earners at the hospital. Morris held a management position while raising three children, but that's not all she praises at her facility. Sometimes it's the little things that can make a difference, she said. For example, the hospital provides on-site dry cleaning, hair styling and other services. "Dropping off your laundry on lunch break means a lot," she said. And what's good for the employee has proved to be successful for the facility as well. "There's no question about our telecommuting program being an employee retention issue," stated Frame. "I look at the current staff I have right now, and I know there's probably a dozen excellent skilled workers who I would not have if they couldn't work from home and we didn't offer them flexibility." "In the early years when my children were young, I had several different job offers and opportunities to move out of the Baptist Health System," added Morris. "What kept me at Baptist was the day care. Not only was it convenient, but it was well operated." The positive impact on their families holds the most meaning for employees, said Cindy Barnard, director of quality strategies for Northwestern and a single mother of two. "This hospital celebrates people who have fulfilling lives, including families and community service commitments. The ability to attend a school function, accommodate a sick kid, or go on a field trip is worth a great deal." Linda Gross is on staff at ADVANCE.