Why aren’t you working right now?

5 million Americans say there’s one big reason: They’re caring for children who aren’t in school or daycare.

Frequent COVID-19 outbreaks are creating unexpected school closures and quarantines – and 80% of daycare centers report that they’re struggling to find enough child-care workers.

And the resulting juggling act for parents has hit their careers hard. Families are getting frazzled, and many women’s careers are being put on pause (Nearly 1.6 million mothers have left the American workforce in the pandemic era, leading to the lowest female participation rates since the 1970s). In turn, employers are finding it harder to hire and retain talent.

At Adecco, we believe the pandemic is an opportunity to reimagine work, and part of that is rethinking that elusive work/life balance. Below, learn what employers can do to attract and retain working parents.

Instill a family-friendly culture

Reduce stress and anxiety for working parents by ensuring your managers have the right mindset. Refocus their thinking on the value working parents bring to the table, including adaptability, leadership, and empathy. Supervisors can be more understanding of disruptions caused by sick children and daycare surprises (which are often causes of absenteeism and turnover). If you can, consider offering stipends for daycare or educational expenses. And – crucially – make sure employees exercising these benefits don’t face stigma or other barriers.

Meet parents where they are

Avoid making assumptions about what you think is best, and let parents take the lead. Make sure they feel comfortable telling you what accommodations work for them and which ones don’t by conducting listening sessions and anonymous surveys. When employers let parents decide what they can take on, they can stop the vicious cycle that can stunt parents’ career growth or cause them to stay out of the workforce altogether.

Measure performance on results, not hours

In workplaces where staying late is more important than the work getting done, parents can really struggle. Establish meaningful performance metrics based on merit, not hours. Discourage presenteeism and ‘busy metrics’ that could exacerbate burnout and turnover. These types of expectations can leave parents labeled as not committed or excited about their jobs. In turn, they can miss out on big projects or opportunities to advance their careers. Again, this is another area where employers can step up and make an effort to create pathways for parents to advance and grow in their roles.

Rethink location

Parents tend to make location decisions based on school districts, housing costs, and their neighborhood or community. On the other hand, employers may prefer big cities or major industry hubs, but these may be precisely the districts working parents would rather avoid. While incentives like relocation packages only work for those with the flexibility and freedom to relocate geographically, opening up to more hybrid or fully remote positions can be key to getting fresh and committed talent.

At Adecco, we believe a diverse and welcoming workplace is key for every business’s long-term success. For more insights on the complex, unfolding issues shaping our working world, download our research paper, Resetting Normal: Defining The New Era Of Work.

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The COVID-19 pandemic upended work as we know it, and the hybrid model is here to stay – whether employers want it or not. However, it’s an opportunity to reimagine how we think about work. So, as you and your team continue a sporadic return to the office, what ways of working will ensure everyone feels supported, included, and ready to perform at their best? Below, we list five hybrid work opportunities identified in The Adecco Group’s Resetting Normal research and offer our insights into harnessing them.

Better work-life balance for parents

Constant juggling. Crazy hours. Who said remote work was the promised land for working parents? Although 50% of parents said their work-life balance had improved in the pandemic’s wake, parents increasingly prefer to set boundaries between work and family time. Hybrid working gives workers more control over their schedule and shortens their commute time. Flexible work environments are especially highly valued by moms (81%), dads (73%), and those with caring responsibilities (79%) – but parents want to spend more time at the office (51%) than the rest of their colleagues (42%). Cloud-based collaboration tools give working parents the best of both worlds, empowering everyone to work from wherever suits them. Thankfully, driven by the pandemic’s urgency, most firms have already adopted these game-changing tools.

Rethinking the virtual workplace for younger employees

More than half of the nation’s total population are millennials, Gen Z, or younger. But young workers are feeling isolated and are finding it hard to grow their careers without the in-person networking their older colleagues enjoyed. It is vital to find ways to keep younger employees engaged and make sure they have experienced people around to help them grow. As teams and leaders get used to connecting with each other virtually, hybrid workplaces are facilitating relationships between colleagues who are far-flung, multi-generational, and of various seniority levels. Hybrid makes it easier to expand the reach of career-boosting programs like mentorship. ‘Reverse mentoring‘ is on the rise in the hybrid environment, too, helping young workers build vital skills, while giving leaders invaluable insights that help them stay relevant to younger colleagues and customers.

Collaborating and building community in the virtual workplace

From collaborative virtual meetings to virtual polls to whiteboarding: 63% of respondents said their digital and remote working skills improved during the pandemic. Communication and brainstorm increasingly take place on open online platforms, often incorporating real-time translation so colleagues of various language abilities can contribute. Instead of ideas staying stuck jotted on someone’s notepad, they get refined and turned into actionable tasks and scalable solutions. This ‘working out loud,’ approach also makes it harder to hide inaction or mask poor performance. Done right, hybrid working means expanded collaboration for faster innovations and a more open working culture.

Creating an inclusive future of work

Diverse teams drive innovation. Shifting to a hybrid working model is expected to create more opportunities for people with disabilities (75%), working parents (73%), and those from diverse backgrounds (69%). As well as making it easier for existing employees to fully participate, the hybrid workplace allows employers to hire and onboard remote workers from new, untapped talent pools across America and beyond.

At Adecco, we’re experts in helping employers like you navigate all aspects of today’s tricky employment and economic environment. From white papers to case studies to research papers, we have a wealth of insight on the changing world of work. Also: read our tips on managing remote teams, understanding employee absenteeism, energizing employees during tough times, and tackling ghosting coasting.

Learn more about how we can help your business thrive.

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