Low childcare availability in Bitterroot affecting employee retention
by John Dowd
Last Thursday, several local and state experts gathered at Hamilton City Hall for a special event, organized by a local nonprofit. The Bitterroot Business and Childcare Summit worked to present an alternative view on the Montana employment issue, and to provide an opportunity for employers to better their employee hire and retention rates. The summit was put on by the Evergreen Kids Corner, which is now rebranding and will from now on be known as the Bitterroot Early Learning Network. The summit was also organized with the help of the Bitterroot Chamber of Commerce.
Ariella Fabra, executive director for the Bitterroot Early Learning Network, was one of the people responsible for organizing the summit. Fabra has extensive education on human development and explained how, prior to the summit, Montana and the Bitterroot especially have seen difficulty retaining employees. Throughout the summit, it was recognized that part of the issue comes down to affordable housing. However, as Fabra described, there is an untapped portion of the workforce that circumvents that issue, as they already have housing. According to Fabra, there are many parents who are out of work due to not being able to find reliable childcare, effectively removing them from the workforce to care for their children themselves. Fabra, and others at the summit, believe this is not due to the lack of a desire to work, but to the circumstances found in the Bitterroot. Many of the presenters during the summit believed that given the choice, parents would want the ability to work, but the options are just not always feasible or existent.
The summit called upon several experts in various fields, including Jason Nitschke, Senior Child Care Business Advisor for Zero to Five Montana, a state-wide nonprofit that works to increase access to early childcare and education. During his presentation at the summit, he quoted information from several sites including the Montana Department of Commerce and childcaredeserts.org. According to Nitschke, in Ravalli County only 24% of the need for childcare is met, meaning that “for every four children in need of care, only one has access.” Further, there are 619 licensed care spots available in the area, and over 2,621 children between the ages of zero and five that need a spot. Nitschke defined the “Childcare Desert,” a term used frequently throughout the summit, as an area that provides care for less than 33% of the people who need it. Ravalli County falls well under that percentage.
Another speaker, Scott Wolff, the former Director of Workforce Development for the Great Falls Chamber and a current U.S. Chamber Foundation for Early Childhood and Business Advisory Council member, weighed in on the issue. According to him, “it’s one of those few things that is truly bipartisan,” and “employers have a role to play.” Wolff proposed that many employers shy away when the idea of childcare is brought up when relating to business. Wolff believes they may think it is not within their expertise or duty. However, Wolff and others believe there are numerous benefits to not only providing things like working parent support and flexible scheduling, but even to creating systems of on-site childcare and subsidies for care.
According to Wolff, citing sources like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, the effect on business is so great on the Montana economy that over $317 million is lost in the state every year over it. According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, nationally, it costs the country around “$122 billion in lost earnings, productivity and revenue.” He also stated that more than half of the people in the U.S. live in a “childcare desert,” and in Montana, childcare costs can be significant. According to the statistics Wolff showed in his presentation, annual childcare can cost as much as 31% of the median household income, and can be anywhere from $5,357 to $24,400.
Wolff said that the question often comes up, “why not increase supply?” In other words, why not create more childcare providers? The issue is that staffing for many childcare businesses accounts for 65-80% of their budgets and tuition is their only source of revenue. This, according to Wolff, can lead to exorbitant costs in care, pricing out many families and still resulting in overworked and underpaid staff. Wolf again referenced the U.S Chamber of Commerce Foundation statistics, saying that the average wage for a childcare worker in Montana is just $11.18 an hour. “I don’t know anyone that can afford to live on $11.18 an hour,” said Wolff.
Wolff added that many businesses attempted to remedy the issue, using COVID-19 funds to create programs that are no longer funded due to the temporary nature of the pandemic funds. Utilizing the federal funding has had limited mitigation of these issues, according to Wolff.
Additionally, other stats given during the summit say the issue runs deep in Montana business growth and operation. According to stats from a 2022 Montana Dept. of Labor and Industry report, “30% of Montana businesses say inadequate child care has prevented their company from growing.” According to a 2023 Montana DLI report, “68,000 parents in Montana are not fully participating in the labor force due to the lack of childcare.” Polling data done by Zero to Five Montana indicates that “89% of Montanans agree the economy is impacted when working parents don’t have access to childcare.”
One attendee of the summit, congressional candidate Monica Tranel, spoke on the matter prior to the summit. She expressed her interest in the summit to discover how childcare relates to business. “This is a real issue for me, personally,” said Tranel. Being an only parent herself, she said she believes that “this is an issue that affects everyone in our community.” She told the story of how she has had to bring her own kids to work with her in the past and said, “If your childcare wasn’t able to make it, what else do you do?”
Tranel expressed an interest in working to provide solutions to young working families if she gets elected, because the issues facing Ravalli County are not unique to the valley. She said she believes that “giving opportunities to the whole family” may help mitigate the issue. She said one of the ways this could happen would be the expansion of programs that aid in education for parents. “What are the opportunities for young people who want to pursue their own education?” To her, these are very few and add to the difficulty of raising a child, while working. She believes that seeking further education to better their financial situation is nearly impossible in some cases.
Tranel was asked about the temporary COVID-19 funds and how schools and other businesses might be able to continue to operate those needed programs. She was asked if there is state and federal funding available to reach a solution. She answered that there may be. Tranel cited the Child Tax Credit as an option available to families now that can help with some issues, but there was still no answer to the question of a viable longterm funding solution.
However, according to Wolff, there are solutions. By working to create a childcare-friendly work environment, studies have shown that the workforce appreciates it. It can also benefit a business with an ultimate return of an average $9 to every dollar spent on childcare to the business’s revenue, it prevents “employers from losing money due to high turnover,” and it creates a more loyal workforce that Wollf attributed to numerous positive impacts.
Wolff claimed that it will take work from all sides, including from government, individuals and nonprofit organizations like the Bitterroot Early Learning Network. However, The answer may not lie in the state and federal government as much as it may in the efforts of the businesses themselves.