REPORT FROM THE FIELD:
Small Business Owners & Family Friendly Policies
September 24, 2020
OVERVIEW
KEY TAKEAWAY
Profound social and economic shifts over the last few decades have transformed the lives of working Americans and created new challenges for American families. A confluence of trends—the rising participation of women in the labor force; an increasing number of single-parent and dual worker households; the growth of non traditional employment; higher living costs, especially in many urban areas; unaffordable or inaccessible quality child care; and the loss of stable, high-quality, middle-wage jobs—has greatly increased the difficulty of balancing work and family commitments for millions of Americans.
Because it is no longer possible for many to support a family on a single income, far fewer households have the flexibility to forego paid employment to meet caregiving demands.
BACKGROUND
The Bipartisan Policy Center and Public Private Strategies together organized a set of strategic, focused roundtables with small business leaders from the private sector to better understand employer perspectives around current policies, and identify potential opportunities to better support employees with caregiving responsibilities. Each roundtable was designed to identify issues important to both small business owners and their employees, pinpoint barriers to change, and spark new ideas about how businesses can design and advance policies that give employees the support they need to care for their young children.
KEY FINDINGS
Recognize small businesses are unique and must be treated separately at the federal, state, and local policy level.
Develop flexible policies, instead of a one-size-fits-all approach.
Provide financial assistance, preferably in the form of tax incentives or grants, to small businesses to ensure their employees and staff are able to access family supportive benefits.
Consider community-wide approaches to help working parents and families.
Federally fund programs, but include a mix of state and local control and decision-making power.
Clearly communicate policy and program options to small businesses and provide assistance in understanding and applying for such policies or benefits.
CONCLUSION
Small business owners have immense importance in communities around the country, and their policies impact millions of workers and their families. Throughout our conversations with small business owners, it was clear that they feel a strong duty to their employees to help them out as they would a family member or close friend. At the same time, small business owners rightly feel constrained by budgets and operating margins, as well as the anxiety for producing and staying in business, and ultimately thriving. They know that when their employees thrive, their business thrives, and one way to do that is to support their needs as a caregiver. In considering ways to help families, workers, and the economy, lawmakers should consider policies and incentives that would help small business owners offer family supportive policies for their employees.
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