Princeton Offers Backup Care Program --
For Children Through Elderly

University Contracts With Colorado-Based Work Options Group To Provide Comprehensive Backup Care Solution

DENVER (February 21, 2006) -- Princeton University has contracted with Work Options Group to provide faculty, staff and graduate students with a backup when they experience disruptions in their child, adult and elder caregiving arrangements that would otherwise prevent them from fulfilling their work or study obligations.

The program, called Backup Care Options, provides employees and graduate students with a fast, easy, reliable and affordable way to secure temporary care for their loved ones so they can remain productive. The program features 24/7 phone and web access to a team of backup care specialists who provide advice, present options and schedule care with an individually screened provider from Work Options Group’s provider network. The network consists of thousands of individually contracted providers throughout the U.S. and Canada – from childcare centers to home health care agencies.

Backup Care Options is available in all locations, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, for infants through the elderly, whether they are healthy or mildly ill. It resolves various gaps in caregiving, including: replacing regular caregivers when they are sick or on vacation; caring for spouses, partners and loved ones who are recovering from medical treatment; and caring for children or adult family members when they are ill or home during a school closure.

Starting March 1, Princeton’s benefits-eligible employees (including postdoctoral fellows) and graduate students can obtain temporary care for $4 per hour (for up to three dependents) for in-home care or $2 per hour per child for center-based care. Each employee or graduate student will have 100 hours of backup care available for each calendar year, for use when a breakdown in their caregiving arrangements and prevents them from working or studying.

"This backup care could be for an elderly parent across the country who needs short-term help, a spouse or partner who's sick at home or a 5-year-old who's out of school because of Presidents' Day," said Joan Girgus, professor of psychology and special assistant to the dean of the faculty on matters relating to gender equity. "The advantage of this program is that it's available for loved ones of all ages in all parts of the country at a very low cost to the employee or graduate student."

The new program is the result of efforts by the University's Child Care Working Group, which Girgus chairs.  According to a survey commissioned by the university, 40 percent of graduate students, faculty and staff said they would take advantage of such a program.

Princeton is the first university to partner with Work Options Group, whose clients include several companies on Working Mother's 100 Best list (Accenture, Ernst & Young, KPMG, McGraw-Hill, Prudential and Verizon Wireless). Last year, the company's Backup Care Options program provided more than 124,000 hours of backup care to employees in the U.S. and Canada, saving client companies $5.12 million in absenteeism costs.

University administrators believe offering the program puts Princeton in the lead among higher education institutions providing such benefits because of several factors: the inclusion of graduate students as well as faculty and staff; the low co-pay made possible by University underwriting; the wide geographic scope; and the option of home- or center-based care for loved ones of any age.

"This is a short-term solution with long-term benefits," said University President Shirley M. Tilghman. "It is just one more way that we are able to assist members of the University community in achieving a better work-life balance.”

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About Work Option Group
Work Options Group’s Backup Care Options program enables more than 420,000 employees throughout the U.S. and Canada to get to work when they experience temporary breakdowns in their child, adult and elder care arrangements.  Backup Care Options resolves every common breakdown in caregiving situations by offering temporary care in every location, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, for infants through the elderly, whether they are healthy or mildly ill. Employers across all industries have discovered that this proven, cost-effective program reduces absenteeism, increases productivity and promotes work/life effectiveness. Current clients include Guidant, Gillette, Prudential, KPMG, AT&T, Accenture, Ernst & Young, Time Warner, Princeton University and Verizon Wireless.