Why isn’t summer camp free?
Despite being a critical form of childcare for working parents, summer camp remains a costly private expense that lacks the public funding and infrastructure of the K-12 school system. This gap lea…
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Siemens had a wildly popular childcare center. Then it shut it down.
The abrupt closure of a beloved on-site childcare center at a Siemens campus underscores the precarious nature of employer-sponsored care. As companies downsize or shift to hybrid models, families …
Exporting Our Elders
For many families, the soaring costs of long-term memory care create a devastating financial and emotional burden that outpaces personal savings. As the aging population grows, these systemic gaps …
Mothers in Wisconsin and Denmark face vastly different childcare realities
A comparison of motherhood in Wisconsin and Denmark reveals the vast divide between a system of high costs and career penalties versus one of state-funded support. These differing policy choices sh…
Jordan Carlos on Choreplay: Saving Your Marriage Through the Division of Labor
Better Life Lab’s Haley Swenson interviews standup comic and TV writer Jordan Carlos about his new book for men on sharing the invisible work of family life.
Explainer: Paid and Unpaid Leave Policies in the United States
A short primer on private-sector workers’ access and use of federal unpaid leave through the FMLA and an introduction to state programs.
Explainer: Paid Leave Benefits and Funding in the United States
A short primer on state paid family and medical leave programs across 13 states and Washington, DC.
Shifting Immigration Policies Are Changing Daily Life for Child Care Providers
Changing immigration policies are creating fear and uncertainty for child care providers and the families they serve. Across the country, providers say attendance is dropping and routines are being…
Pay Equity Fund for D.C.’s Early Educators Faces Possible Elimination
Washington, D.C.’s pay equity fund for early educators may be on the chopping block, alarming providers who say the program helped stabilize a workforce long plagued by low wages. Advocates warn cu…
Inside New Mexico’s Universal Child Care
New Mexico’s new universal child care system is already reshaping daily life for families by lowering costs and expanding access. Advocates say the program offers a model for what state-level inves…