Meijer offering new care options for employees

Midwest retailer Meijer is helping alleviate the cost of child care for its employees by offering new care options that could help them save hundreds of dollars each year. The benefit was developed to meet the needs of all families and encompasses care for children, adult dependents and elderly family members.

All of the more than 70,000 Meijer associates are eligible for the care benefit from day one of their employment. The benefit can be used in one of two ways:

• Personal Network Option: Team members who prefer to use a care provider from their personal network are eligible to have 10% of their care costs reimbursed, regardless of whether that care is for a child, adult dependent, or elderly family member. For full-time team members, that means a reimbursement of up to $100 a month or $1,200 a year for each individual receiving care, and for part-time team members, that equates to up to $50 a month, or $600 a year for each individual receiving care.
• Learning Care Group Option: Through its partnership with Novi, Mich.-based Learning Care Group, Meijer team members will receive a 20% discount at any one of Learning Care Group's more than 1,100 schools under 11 brands, including Tutor Time, AppleTree & Gilden Woods, and Childtime. Meijer team members will also receive free initial registration for new enrollees and priority enrollment by moving to the top of the wait list.

"As a working mom with two kids, I'm all too familiar with the challenges of child care," said Michelle Hall, SVP and chief human resource officer at Meijer. "Although my kids are getting older and more independent, I remember the stress of having two kids in daycare. We want to lessen that stress, so we're pleased to offer this new benefit with flexible options to help our team members save hundreds of dollars on care each year."

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Other benefits available to Meijer employees include team member discounts, flexible scheduling, career advancement opportunities, paid parental leave and the option for 401(k) retirement contributions.

Sean Sondreal, chief business development officer at Learning Care Group, added: "We are excited to partner with Meijer to offer a customized care solution. By subsidizing part of the tuition, Meijer is ensuring their employees have access to affordable, high-quality care."

Privately owned, family-operated Meijer operates 500-plus supercenters, grocery stores, neighborhood markets and express locations throughout the Midwest.

This story originally appeared on sister publication Progressive Grocer.