Your Workplace: Coping with the Summer Scramble

Over the last month, Liz, a full-time editor at a West Coast publishing house and a mother of two, has been going a little nuts. With major work deadlines looming, she's been caught up in a flurry of end-of-school activities for her son and daughter, including plays, field trips, recitals, school picnics and graduations. Not to mention the challenge of piecing together high quality child care and a constructive and safe summer schedule for her children.

"People tend to think that the big holidays are the most stressful times of the year, but actually, for me, it's this time of year - this big transition from school to summer gets me into a frenzy," said Liz (a pseudonym). "It's the time I'm most torn between my obligations at work and my need to be involved with my kids' lives. Plus, my kids are bouncing between joy that summer freedom is on the horizon and misery over having to say goodbye to beloved teachers or friends. There are a lot of big emotions zinging around my house."

It's called the "summer scramble" according to Peter Burki, CEO of LifeCare®, Inc., a Westport, Connecticut-based specialty health care organization. It's the time when juggling multiple demands becomes especially difficult and can result in problems for both employees and employers.

For working parents, who make up about 40% of the workforce, the stress can lead to absenteeism or even to quitting their job altogether. A recent online poll conducted by LifeCare showed that 68% of working parents were contemplating working fewer hours or quitting because of childcare issues. And, for the first time, employment statistics show a drop in the number of working moms who are married and have a child less than one year old. A Time magazine article (The Case for Staying Home, 3/22/04) reported that some women in the "professional" class, who are in the position to make the choice are leaving the workforce.

At the very least, the stress of employees caught up in the summer scramble can lead to a loss in productivity. The Department of Labor estimates that companies lose $4 billion every year because of absenteeism due to child care problems. At most, it can end up being the final factor that drives a valuable employee out the company door.

But more and more employers are becoming aware of how personal needs and demands affect their employees, according to a report published by the Center for Community Partnerships, University of Wisconsin Oshkosh. They recognize that they are happier and get more done when they 1) feel supported, 2) believe that their employer views personal problems as part and parcel of everyone's life and 3) feel they have some control over their schedule and work demands.

"In my experience as a CEO with 300 employees, if you meet an employee half way and help them make their schedule work for them, the payback to your company is ten-fold because of the boost in morale, loyalty and productivity," Burki said. "It's a win-win for everyone."

According to LifeCare and the Center for Community Partnerships at the University of Wisconsin, among the creative perks that can help employees achieve a good work/life balance are:

• Job Sharing. Job sharing helps to prevent work projects from falling through cracks due to child care falling through.

• Locating Services. Help with locating services such as before-or-after school programs, affordable, reliable child care and in-home care can ease the scramble.

• Back up Child Care. For employers who want to take the an extra step, companies like LifeCare can help set up back up care in case an employee's regular child care falls through. This kind of program can pay for itself very quickly.

• Half-day Fridays. From Memorial Day to Labor Day, a company can encourage employees to finish their 40-hour work week earlier in the week so they can leave by noon on Fridays and spend an extended weekend with family.

• No-meeting Fridays. Here's a way to help discourage people from taking work home on the weekends. Forbid groups of three or more to meet on Fridays. The idea is to allow employees to get more focused work done by the end of the day on Friday.

"It's in an employer's own enlightened self-interest to help employees avoid the summer scramble by helping with child care issues, flexibility and creating that healthy balance between work and home," Burki said. "It pays huge, huge dividends when employees feel that these issues are important to their company. Happy and loyal employees will always go the extra mile."