Episode 242

You Can't Recruit Workers Who Can't Find Childcare with Nicole Riehl

November 9th, 2026

29 mins

Link with Timestamp

Download MP3 (27.6 MB)

Your Host
Special Guest
Tags
childcare and economic development workforce participation talent attraction and retention employer-sponsored childcare childcare affordability early childhood education childcare supply and demand public-private partnerships workforce development childcare business models

About this Episode

In this episode of the Econ Dev Show, Dane Carlson talks with Nicole Riehl, president and CEO of Executives Partnering to Invest in Children (EPIC), about the childcare crisis hiding in plain sight in America's workforce.

Nicole explains why communities can't simply recruit new jobs without considering whether workers can actually show up, why childcare is simultaneously unaffordable for families and financially challenging for providers, and how employers can become part of the solution. From a Colorado ski town with 76 babies born annually and just eight licensed infant and toddler childcare spaces to employers building facilities and partnering with local operators, Nicole shares real examples of creative solutions.

She also walks through how economic developers can assess local childcare supply, demand, and affordability, bring the right partners together, and turn a seemingly impossible problem into a practical workforce development strategy.

10 Actionable Takeaways for Economic Developers

  1. Treat childcare as essential workforce infrastructure. When recruiting a company bringing 200 jobs to your community, don't just ask whether the workers exist. Ask whether those workers can reliably show up and stay employed. Childcare availability directly affects workforce participation, recruitment, retention, and productivity.
  2. Conduct a local childcare supply assessment. Start by identifying the number of licensed childcare facilities and available spaces in your community. Break that inventory down by age group, particularly infants and toddlers, and by operating hours. State childcare licensing agencies and Child Care Aware of America can provide useful starting data.
  3. Look beyond traditional business hours. Childcare shortages are often especially acute for employees working second shifts, third shifts, evenings, and weekends. When recruiting manufacturing, healthcare, or other shift-based employers, investigate whether childcare operating hours align with the jobs you're trying to attract.
  4. Measure affordability against actual local wages. Childcare availability means little if employees cannot afford it. Compare local childcare costs against wages in existing and prospective industries. Nicole cites a federal affordability benchmark of approximately 7% of household income, while some families spend substantially more. Identify available public funding programs that might close the gap.
  5. Include childcare demand in your economic development projections. When planning a new industrial park, technology campus, or major employer expansion, estimate how the additional workforce and anticipated population growth will affect childcare demand. Address potential shortages before they become recruitment and retention problems.
  6. Explore shared childcare facilities for multiple employers. A single employer may not have enough demand or financial capacity to support a childcare center alone. Multiple businesses in an industrial park or employment district may be able to jointly invest in a facility that serves their combined workforce.
  7. Don't assume employers need to operate childcare centers themselves. Steamboat Ski Resort owns and operates its facility, but Nicole explains that this arrangement is relatively uncommon. A hospital in western Colorado helped develop a 100-child facility and partnered with an existing local childcare operator. Look for opportunities to match employers with experienced providers who want to expand.
  8. Use economic development tools to lower childcare development costs. Local governments and economic development organizations can support childcare projects through land contributions, assistance with zoning and land-use approvals, and financial partnerships. These tools can help make projects feasible without requiring the public sector to operate the facilities.
  9. Consider solutions beyond building new facilities. A new childcare center isn't always the answer. Employers might offer childcare stipends or tuition assistance, help an existing provider add a classroom, or partner with a provider to extend operating hours. The right solution depends on the workforce's actual needs and the local childcare market.
  10. Help employers move from recognizing the problem to implementing a solution. Use the free Employer Childcare Navigator, developed by EPIC and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, to help businesses assess their options, explore case studies, and identify potential providers. EPIC's childcare design lab model also demonstrates how technical assistance, financial planning, and implementation support can help employers move from an idea to an operating solution. Learn more at epicimpact.org.

Episode Links