The school holidays can be a tough time for working parents, but the challenges don’t stop there. Follow these top tips to support working parents in your workplace all year round.
With the Christmas holidays looming, a lot of the parents in your office will be facing up to the classic struggle of balancing work, childcare and spending quality time with their kids during the holiday.
This conflict can be a tricky one to manage, but these tips can help you support parents in your workplace…
Encourage flexible working hours
While the standard 9-5 working day is still very much the norm, there’s no denying that more and more companies are looking at ways to introduce flexible working hours. For parents, this could be a lifesaver, allowing them to fit their working day around other commitments and enabling them to arrange childcare as and when it suits.
Allow remote working
For parents who spend hours commuting every day, being able to work from home even once or twice a week can make a world of difference. Working from home can give parents some very welcome flexibility when it comes to childcare arrangements, and it’s also a great chance for them to catch up on all those pesky household chores alongside their regular day-to-day work.
Don’t skimp on parental leave
While maternity and paternity leave are legal requirements, there’s nothing stopping you from rewarding staff with some extra parental leave perks if you can afford to, whether it’s more time or more pay. It’s also a good idea to keep new mothers on maternity leave feeling involved in the business by inviting them into the office so that they can catch up with friends and colleagues and see how the business is doing.
Offer on-site parental perks
Unless you work for a big company, there’s little chance of having an office creche on-site to look after your employees’ children. But that doesn’t mean you can’t offer any parent perks at the workplace. On-site services like dry cleaning, grocery delivery, and online shopping collection can be a big help for parents as they ease the stress of trying to fit this life admin around their working day.
Work around the school holidays
Everyone knows that work takes a hit during the holidays, and if you work in an industry that slows down when the schools break up, then why not give the parents in your office more flexibility in their working week? Just make sure you don’t leave yourself short-staffed if you have any big deadlines coming up!
