Spartanburg nonprofits tackle issue of child care for late-shift workers

Herald-Journal - 8/6/2017

Aug. 06--The United Way of the Piedmont and several other nonprofit organizations are looking into the feasibility of a child care program for second- and third-shift workers.

In a county with several major manufacturing operations, the need is there, according to Spartanburg County nonprofit officials. So the United Way is interested not just in what types of programs could be implemented, but in what second- and third-shift workers want to see.

"We need to know what is the need, first of all, and do some focus groups with parents and caregivers to learn what would and wouldn't work in our community," said Heather Witt, United Way vice president of community impact.

Witt said the United Way is working with the Spartanburg Academic Movement, the Mary Black Foundation and Quality Counts to develop a feasibility study.

Ida Thompson, child care liaison at Spartanburg Regional Medical Center, said the need is significant. But she said addressing it will likely take a level of buy-in from employers, especially in Spartanburg County.

"It is expensive to run a child care facility," she said. "The only way we can get it to work in the community is to think of creative ways to pull in churches and the businesses that need this care for their communities."

For parents working late at night or early in the morning, finding someone they trust to care for their children during those hours can be tough.

"If you look at our community, manufacturing is one of those career pipelines, and those factories run 24/7 in a lot of cases," Thompson said. "Especially when you're beginning in a position, those second- and third-shift positions, there are plenty. In a single-parent household, you don't always have someone to rely on to provide that care."

Keisha Gray, early childhood development program specialist at the Mary Black Foundation, said child care is a major issue, especially in single-parent homes and for lower-income workers.

She said the group has met once so far, when it discussed "OK, here's the data, here's the need and does it make sense to take this approach."

"We realized (that) anecdotally, through organizations working with families, that child care is always a barrier that's articulated," she said.

Witt said a key part of the research into the child care need will involve speaking with workers to find out what they'd like.

Looking into how other communities have implemented similar programs will be another major portion of the upcoming study, Witt said. She said the process could take a few months.

A future child care model in Spartanburg could end up setting the standard for other similar communities, Thompson said.

"It has historically been a real difficult need to address," she said. "I think we're going to have to create something. I think we'll have to take the lead on this and do something maybe no one has ever done before."

Witt said options could include in-home child care or overnight programs where parents can get to know child care staff so they trust them with their children's well-being.

"It's talking to the parents. Part of the plan is to have focus groups with parents who struggle with this issue so we can know what they think would be safe and appropriate for their children," she said.

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