National Survey Shows Small Businesses Hurt by Lack of Affordable Child Care and Owners Support Federal Child Care Investments

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National Survey Shows Small Businesses Hurt by Lack of Affordable Child Care and Owners Support Federal Child Care Investments 

A new national survey of 1,000 small business owners finds the pandemic has exacerbated child care issues for small business owners and employees, and owners want the federal government to provide solutions


October 4, 2021— A national survey of more than 1,000 small business owners in, Small Business for America’s Future’s small business network finds that small businesses are being hurt by a lack of affordable child care, and small business owners support increases in federal funding for child care. 


“The lack of affordable, high-quality child care directly impacts our ability to grow and sustain our businesses,” said Tiara Flynn, President & CEO of Sumnu Marketing, and a member of Small Business for America’s Future Small Business Council. “Covid-19 has exacerbated these challenges and small business owners want to see our leaders in Washington find solutions. Small business owners can’t reach their full potential if their ability to operate and to hire and keep good employees is hamstrung by high child care costs.”


Child care is a challenge for small business owners and their employees, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic. Small Business for America’s Future surveyed 1,060 small business owners across the country between August 2-20. The small business owners responding to the survey say the lack of affordable child care options for employees is an issue that has been made more onerous by Covid and is causing them problems with hiring, impacts their ability to deliver for clients, and forces them to pass up growth opportunities. 


The survey found 72% of small business owners surveyed said they have employees with at least one child under 13 or that have a need for daily child care services and just 28% offer benefits related to child care. The survey also found:

  • 66% of small business owners surveyed nationally believe the federal government has a role in supporting universal access to affordable, high-quality child care
  • 64% support direct, ongoing financial assistance to families for child care services 
  • 70% support federal funding dedicated to providing child care services to underserved communities
  • 55% of small business owners surveyed believe that the lack of affordable, high-quality child care for employees has had a negative impact on their business
  • 52% have experienced employee turnover as a result of a lack of affordable child care
  • 80% of small business owners surveyed said the Covid-19 pandemic has made balancing child care and work responsibilities more difficult for their employees (56% said it was significantly more difficult), and 64% report having to adjust employee policies or business operations to account for these challenges.


Small Business for America’s Future will host a virtual event with small business owners and national leaders to discuss the results and impacts of this survey on Thursday, October 7th. You can register for that briefing, here


You can read the full survey results here.




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About Small Business for America’s Future
Small Business for America’s Future is a national coalition of small business owners and leaders working to provide small businesses a voice at every level of government. We’re committed to ensuring policymakers prioritize the nation’s 30 million small businesses to create an economy that works for them, their workers and their communities. Visit 
www.smallbusinessforamericasfuture.org. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook. #SmallBizAF.


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