Child Care Plus

Bank of America's Child Care Plus program reimburses employees for a portion of their child care expenses. The program began in 1989 in response to an employee study that showed a strong link between absenteeism and child care issues. It was pilot-tested at Bank of America's call centers and, because of positive results in reducing absenteeism, the program was expanded to employees nationwide. Child Care Plus is available to employees who work full time or part time; have a base annual salary of $34,000 or less and a total family income of $60,000 or less; need child care to work at Bank of America and are responsible for the cost of that care; have a child 13 years of age or younger with whom they live and are entitled to claim as a dependent; and use a licensed, registered, or informal child care provider. Under Child Care Plus, monthly reimbursement amounts vary according to the age of the child and type of care.

The goal of this program is to reduce absenteeism among Bank of America employees by providing child care assistance.

Bank of America spends 75 percent of its Work/Family Programs' budget on this initiative. However, because parents are less worried about child care, the company is realizing a return on its investment in terms of employee loyalty, retention, reduced absenteeism, and increased productivity. In addition to Child Care Plus, Bank of America offers day care facility financing programs that expand community child care resources to reduce the child care barrier to work.