How employers are tackling the childcare crisis to support today’s workforce
May 21, 2026
Luisina (Basilico) Wilfong tells Building Design + Construction how employer-sponsored childcare supports retention, wellbeing, and stability
Across the US, the childcare system shows clear signs of strain. Child Care Aware estimates that costs have increased nearly 220 percent since 1990, outpacing general inflation, while wages for childcare workers stay near poverty levels.
A study by the Center for American Progress, covering 22 states, finds that more than half of all Americans live in childcare deserts where supply cannot meet demand. The impacts go beyond families; they influence the economy.
A Council for a Strong America, ReadyNation report found that breakdowns in childcare now cost US businesses US$122 billion in lost productivity each year. At the same time, employers compete for talent in a tight labor market where flexibility and family support matter more than ever. To meet that challenge, many companies are rethinking childcare not as a benefit but as infrastructure, a critical part of how people work, live, and thrive.
In Building Design + Construction, Luisina (Basilico) Wilfong, principal and design lead at Stantec, explores how employer-sponsored childcare environments can support workforce retention, reduce absenteeism, and improve employee wellbeing.