Family Forward NC is an innovative initiative to improve children’s health and well-being and keep North Carolina’s businesses competitive. It is employer-led change to increase access to research-based, family-friendly practices — big and small — that improve workplace productivity, recruitment and retention; grow a strong economy; and support children’s healthy development.
Business Smart.
Family-friendly workplaces have a strong competitive advantage.
Family Friendly.
The benefits of family-friendly workplaces are numerous and long-lasting.
Future Ready.
To prepare our future workforce for success, we have to start in early childhood.
Families Have Changed.
But workplaces haven’t.
Seventy-five percent of US mothers and fifty percent of US fathers say they’ve passed up work opportunities, switched jobs, or quit to care for their children.Footnote # 1
Family Forward in Action
Family Forward NC Expands Rapid Response to Small Businesses to Help Them Navigate COVID Reopening or Retooling and Stay Resilient
Through our work engaging more than 5,500 NC businesses and employers since 2018, we’ve heard from small business owners across the state who say they want to incorporate more family…
Chef Katie Button: Family-Friendly Practices Are Business Smart Through COVID and Beyond
Katie Button, CEO and Executive Chef of Katie Button Restaurants in Asheville, says COVID-19 has only furthered her commitment to incorporating family-friendly practices into her business over time. From lactation…
7 Resources to Help Employers Support Breastfeeding in the Workplace
As women leave the workforce in record numbers, it’s time for employers to consider the ways they can attract and retain working mothers. One important (and typically low-cost) step is…