A recent New York Times column by Joe Nocera was interesting to me for two reasons:
1. I’m a new parent, and daycare issues are always on my mind, even though we are lucky to currently have family taking care of our child.
2. Having worked with Silicon Valley tech news for about a decade, I’ve read lots and lots — and lots — about Google, the Mountain View company with the do-no-evil mantra. So when anything with even a hint of negativity about Google pops up, I pay close attention. In this case, the piece was about daycare at Google. The imaginary siren above my head just went crazy.
Anyway: The short story is that Google apparently is raising the price of daycare after figuring out that it was putting out $37,000 a year to subsidize each child in its program. According to the NYT column, the new plan would have cost parents with two kids in the daycare nearly $60,000 a year. The company is paring the cost a little, but it appears it will be significantly more than the current cost of $33,000 a year for two kids.
In other words, newer — and presumably less wealthy — Google employees may no longer be able to afford daycare for their kids at their place of employment. While some people may not have sympathy for them because after all, they do work at Google, I agree with Nocera’s point that daycare is one of the most important perks a company could offer.
Daycare is not like a free gym membership, or free lunches. I don’t dwell on where I’m going to exercise. I don’t obsess about food. (Oh wait, scratch that last sentence. I cannot tell a lie.) But I do think about where my child is at all times. I think about what she’s doing, what she’s playing, what she’s eating, what she’s going to grow up to be like. Children’s care providers play a huge role in that. That’s why it’s important. And that’s why it’s disappointing that a company like Google, supposedly an advocate for all things that are right in the world, has chosen to go after child care. Of course the company should think about the bottom line. But it has a humongous bank account, and it might make for better business strategy to invest in the well-being of its employees and their families. If any company can afford to actually care about such things, it’s Google.
