Resources

 Small Business Month Spotlight: A New Tool to Help You Invest in What Works

Explore Family Forward NC®’s new Paid Family Leave ROI Calculator, designed to help employers make smart, data-driven decisions about paid family leave. May is National Small Business Month, a time to celebrate the entrepreneurs and employers who power North Carolina’s economy and strengthen our communities. At Family Forward NC®, we know that small businesses are not only economic drivers but also essential to the well-being of working families. That’s why we’re proud to introduce a powerful new resource designed with employers in mind: the Family Forward NC® Paid Family Leave ROI Ca…

North Carolina Can Lead on Family-Friendly Work — If We Act

💡 “Insufficient child care availability drains $5.65 billion from North Carolina’s economy each year through lost productivity and turnover.”—  Status of Women in North Carolina: Investing in Economic Opportunity (2025) By Lisa Finaldi A new statewide report from the NC Council for Women & Youth Involvement and the Institute for Women’s Policy Research makes one thing clear: when women thrive, North Carolina thrives. The Status of Women in North Carolina: Investing in Economic Opportunity report confirms what families and employers across the state already know: Child care acc…

Safe Leave: The Policy You’ve Probably Never Heard Of—But Every Workplace Needs

When we think about family-friendly workplace policies, we often picture flexible schedules, paid parental leave, or child care stipends. But there’s one life-saving policy most people have never heard of — safe leave. Safe leave is a workplace policy that allows survivors of domestic or sexual violence—or their family members—to take time off for critical needs such as medical care, legal proceedings, or child-related appointments without having to disclose their situation or provide documentation. It may sound simple, but for many survivors, it can mean the difference between dan…

Best Workplace Practices for Breastfeeding Employees

August is National Breastfeeding Month. It’s a good time for employers to review their workplace policies to ensure that breastfeeding employees are supported and that businesses and organizations have implemented changes in federal law.  By providing lactation accommodations, employers are supporting the health and well-being of both the employee and their child, while gaining a three-to-one return on investment for their business or organization.  We’ve gathered resources from across the country to help your workplace be breastfeeding-friendly.  Learn how…

New Report: Family-Friendly Workplaces Help Retain and Return Workers

A new report by the International Economic Development Council about how economic development professionals can reduce barriers to work and bring people back to the…

NC Department of Commerce: Invest in Children, Working Families to Invest in NC’s Workforce

The North Carolina Department of Commerce’s (NCDoC) recently released Economic Development Strategic Plan calls for investment in children and working fam…

A Collaborative Resource Guide for Child Care and Afterschool Planning in School Districts for 2020-2021

Child Care Services Association (now Early Years), which works to ensure affordable, accessible, high quality child care for all families, recently released a new r…

A Snapshot of Child Care Relief Options During COVID-19

Child Care Relief Options at the Federal and State Level As many businesses close their doors due to the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic, child care centers are feeling the financial strain. 45% of child care centers are losing income because families can’t pay1 25% of centers are losing income because they’re reimbursed by the state based on attendance of low-income families using child care subsidies1 37% of child care providers have had to lay-off or furlough staff or have been laid off or furloughed themselves2 41% of providers anticipate more lay-offs and furloughs in the coming week…

Sample Policy: Part-time Work

The following is from Duke University’s HR website. For the full list of benefits at Duke, click here. Abbreviated Schedule or Part-Time Work Abbreviated schedule or part-time work is a regular arrangement consisting of a workweek that is less than the standard 40 hours per week. Abbreviated schedule and part-time work can attract and retain trained and experienced staff who cannot work full-time due to personal commitments. Abbreviated Schedule Staff members who work an abbreviated schedule are hired to regularly established positions for a period of at least nine months or for…

Sample Policy: Emergency and Backup Child Care

The following is from an employee FAQ for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina’s subsidized back-up and emergency childcare. Blue Cross NC, headquartered in Durham, has 4,700 employees.  Annual Day Allotment for Onsite Backup Childcare: Employees are allocated 30 days per child per year at a subsidized cost. Additional Program Weeks: We will offer program weeks in the during Spring, Summer and Winter Breaks. The program weeks will include special programming and/or field trips. These days are in addition to your annual allotment of back-up days will not count toward the…

Sample Policy: Subsidized Child Care

The following is the YWCA Lower Cape Fear’s subsidized child care and youth program policy. The nonprofit in Wilmington has 75 employees. The overall health and well-being of our employees is very important at the YWCA Lower Cape Fear. We want to encourage all employees to lead a healthy, active lifestyle, and feel connected to all co-workers, programs, activities and facilities. Our goal is to create a comfortable, fun and supportive atmosphere that provides a positive model for employees and their families. The YWCA offers the following health and wellness opportunities to e…

Sample Policy: Flexible Spending Accounts

The following is an excerpt from the Goodwill Industries of Northwest North Carolina 2018 Benefits Summary. For more information, click here. Flexible Spending Account What is it? Goodwill’s Flexible Spending Account (FSA) plan offers full-time regular employees the opportunity to set aside money from each paycheck before taxes are taken to be used for certain dependent care and unreimbursed health care expenses, as well as non-Goodwill health insurance premiums in the employee’s name. Section 125 of the Internal Revenue Code allows Goodwill to provide this pre-tax benefit; howev…