How onsite childcare is helping Walmart staff return to the office
One of the biggest hurdles for parents returning to in-person work is finding adequate childcare. Shortages of childcare workers mean access is limited, and costs continue to climb. But some major employers are trying to solve this by bringing childcare to the office itself.
This May, Walmart opened a childcare center for staff at its new home office campus in Bentonville, Arkansas. The center, spread across two large buildings, accommodates over 500 children, from infancy to pre-K. It stands to be the largest childcare offering in the Northwest Arkansas region, poised to increase local market capacity by 15%, according to the retail giant.
Around the same time the center opened, Walmart announced a return to office policy requiring staff to come in and work at its headquarters in Arkansas or at other hubs in New Jersey and California. And more recently, other major employers have announced stronger RTO policies, like Amazon, which is requiring staff back in offices five days a week starting at the beginning of next year.
Nearly 80% of CEOs predict the end of remote work within the next three years, according to a survey of 1,325 CEOs worldwide from KPMG research. Earlier this year, just over a third of CEOs believed that. And as more staff continue to return, childcare isn’t a want, but a need.
Workers are asking for — and increasingly expecting — more help from their employers to ease caregiving burdens they face outside of work that can impact their professional performance. Without that support, many will leave and look elsewhere for roles with employers that can offer it.
When Walmart unveiled plans for the new campus in 2020, on-site childcare was number one on the list of requested amenities from staff, said Meghan Klosterman, senior manager of program management at Walmart. “It’s more accessible for associates, and there’s a work-life balance,” she said.
The center was created in partnership with Bright Horizons, a major provider of corporate childcare services in the U.S., which has seen an uptick in demand for onsite childcare at offices, said Priya Krishnan, chief digital and transformation officer at Bright Horizons. Similar to on-site gyms, upgraded cafe areas with free food and drinks, and other unique offerings, it’s part of a trend to fill workplaces with amenities that make employees want to come into the office, Krishnan said.
Employers are also recognizing the retention challenges they’ll face if they don’t provide childcare support, and how much it could otherwise harm business outcomes. “To employers it’s not a cost, it’s an investment,” Krishnan said. “This is the best thing you could be doing for your employees, helping them be anchored at home, so they can be productive at work,” she said.
Tuition rates at Walmart’s center vary by age, but are a competitive market rate, Klosterman said.
Walmart’s new childcare center is spread across two buildings with a connecting outdoor plaza, dubbed “parent plaza.” Staff often take their lunch breaks at the outdoor area with their children, with space to run around and play, Klosterman said.
“When those opportunities present themselves to connect back with their child during the work day, they are happier. They’re more satisfied in their professional life because they’re happier at home there. There’s no separating those anymore, and Walmart recognizes that” she said.
“We know that if parents and families are able to come to work knowing that their families are in a good safe place, and that their children are getting the best possible education before they go off to school at school age, that they are able to do better work when they are in the office.”
