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Mid-America Regional Council
600 Broadway, Suite 200
Kansas City, MO 64105
Phone 816/474-4240
Fax 816/421-7758

Family Friendly Workplaces

" 'Family friendly' is a broad term referring to a work environment that seeks to support the employee’s needs outside the workplace. Specifically, family-friendly workplaces establish and sustain programs and policies meant to ease the stress inherent in managing both job and family responsibilities. Child care and dependent care benefits, education and family leave, job flexibility and wellness benefits are among commonly cited family-friendly practices found in today’s workplaces."
— Midwest WholeChild Development Group

The MCEL supports local efforts to encourage the development of family-friendly workplaces in Greater Kansas City. The MCEL partnered with the Midwest WholeChild Development Group, the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce and the Women's Bureau, Region VII, U.S. Department of Labor, to conduct a survey and publish a report on work-family issues in March 2005. Some excerpts:

Becoming More Family Friendly

Most businesses recognize the need to implement family-friendly programs, but many feel they do not have the resources to do so. Small businesses, in particular, may find it difficult to provide all of the supports for balancing work and family that they would like. Midwest WholeChild Development Group offers a list of simple, inexpensive ways that businesses can become more family friendly:

WholeFamily Matters: Family Friendly Workplace Program

Through WholeFamily Matters: Family Friendly Workplace Program, the Midwest WholeChild Development Group will work closely with area employers to assess their employees’ needs and develop, enhance and implement family-friendly workplace policies.

The initiative was piloted with three local companies to develop the program components. The next phase of the project will make the program available to additional Greater Kansas City employers. For more information about the resources offered, contact Nancy Mitchell at the Midwest WholeChild Development Group at 913/341-6200.

Online Resources