The purpose of this study is to examine the status of working parents’ childcare, to identify the problems facing those working parents and to figure out what kind of policy they want in an attempt to draw up more effective childcare assistance policies. Ultimately, this study aims to prevent career disruption of working parents and to assist them to sustain their employment for achieving work-family balance. For this purpose we’ve conducted surveys to analyze the accessibility, affordability, and the quality of childcare. Also we analyzed working parents’ work-family conflict and policy options they want. The results of study are as follows:
First, according to the study results, working parents who are using childcare facilities need more hours of daycare due to the long working hours. There are two ways for this issue. Extending the hours of daycare can be one way to solve this issue. But there is also another solution: adjusting the working hours of parents so that they can pick up their kids from daycare on time.
Second, working parents said that emergency situations ? such as when they have to work overtime or when their kids are sick ? are the biggest problem they face as they are juggling work and childcare. Therefore, adequate measures should be drawn up to help the working parents handle such emergency situations.
Third, the study shows that working parents often work even on Saturdays and Sundays. Thus, childcare services should also be provided during the weekends as well. In addition, there are also Saturdays without classes and discretionary vacation days, for which the adequate childcare programs should be provided to meet the needs of working parents.
Fourth, the middle income families are found to bear the biggest childcare cost burden. The low income households bear relatively small burdens due to the government’s financial assistance, whereas the upper and middle income households appear to bear a heavier cost burden. Therefore, the government financial childcare support should expand the scope of entitlements.
Fourth, ideal childcare methods that the working parents have in mind are as follow: when their kids are infants, most working parents think they should take maternity/parental leave to take care of their babies. And when their kids become toddlers, they think it’s ok to send them to daycare. Thus, the use of maternity/parental leave should be encouraged for the working parents who have infants while childcare services need to be strengthened to meet the needs of the working parents with toddlers.
Lastly, in terms of service quality, most working parents are found to be highly satisfied with the quality of teachers, daycare programs, meals, safety and hygiene. However, the level of satisfaction was lower when it comes to the safety of surrounding environment, and the quality of daycare facilities. Meanwhile, the working parents with elementary school-aged children are found to be highly satisfied with the current services. Actually, these childcare services are shown to play a very important role in helping the working parents juggle work and childcare.
Policy recommendations have been developed based on the above-mentioned study results. The childcare policies need to provide the working parents with the preferential rights for using public daycare services and to provide more childcare subsidy not only to the low-income families but also to the middle income families. To this end, it is recommended that childcare subsidy system be operated in linkage with the daycare evaluation system and the parents' work conditions. Sick-child care leave or the community-based childcare service system can be alternative options for handling unexpected emergency situations. It is also proposed that different approaches be applied to different companies to vitalize the use of daycare facilities at work and after-school care services.
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