A new study by researchers at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln reveals that strengthening family supports could be the key to boosting Nebraska’s economy. The team’s analysis found that with an aging population, evolving immigration, and an outward migration of workers, addressing the changing needs of Nebraska families is crucial for promoting health, well-being, and economic success. The study highlights the importance of accessible high-quality child care, caregiver supports, and health and well-being across the lifespan as essential for retaining a skilled workforce and improving personal productivity.
Diverse and Complex Families
Researchers: The research team discovered that Nebraska families were growing increasingly diverse and complex as the demographic composition of the state population had changed over the last several decades. This transition means that there is an increasing demand for a variety of supports that are centred around the family in order to support the health of real and future generations.
The researchers stress that to make the good life a reality for all Nebraskans it is imperative to reduce geographical and racial disparities in health and healthcare. The need for child care and paid medical leave that covers working caregivers is now bearing out in Nebraska, where the vast majority (more than 70%) of children have all of their adults participating in the labor force.
Closing the Rural-Urban Divide
But the researchers discovered that a breakdown in infrastructure between rural and urban areas in the state leaves families with little support. As Patty Kuo, a co-author of the review and an assistant professor of child, youth, and family studies put it: “The state wants people to work, and we want the state to help people who work.
The study does indicate that policy innovation is needed in order to provide adequate opportunities for families, as the existing policies too often fail to align with what working family life looks like in Nebraska today. The state-of-play underscores the necessity of the paid medical leave policies and affordable child care that only 21st Century working families can see reinforced.
Keeping a Labor Force that is Educated
State workforce retention is crucial, according to the researchers, adding that accommodating the variety of Nebraska’s working-age family needs could also address workers leaving Nebraska for job prospects elsewhere.
Lead author of the study Lorye Wheeler says, “Many kids go to college here at UNL and then end up moving to another state for better opportunities for their families.” This is why we need to retain this educated workforce and we have to make sure that Nebraskans who are already at work can actually provide for their families.
State investment in Nebraska’s children, parents and families is essential to strengthen the state economy and ensure that it is an appealing place for young adults to live and work.
