Sasser Restoration has been named a Family Forward NC Certified Employer by the North Carolina Early Childhood Foundation’s Family Forward NC initiative. As the first company in the restoration and construction industries to earn this honorable designation, Sasser Restoration is committed to leading the industry and supporting its employees and their families through all stages of life.
Launched in 2018, Family Forward NC is an innovative initiative to improve children’s health and well-being and keep North Carolina’s businesses competitive. It is an employer-led change to increase access to research-based, family-friendly practices — big and small — that improve workplace productivity, recruitment and retention; grow a strong economy; and support children’s healthy development. Founded by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina and fueled by the North Carolina Institute of Medicine, Pacific Western Bank, and the Truist Foundation, Family Forward NC has engaged with more than 6,900 employers across North Carolina to date.
Sasser Restoration’s Family Forward NC Employer Certification designates that the company offers policies and practices that support the health and well-being of working families and children. In order to have achieved this certification, Sasser Restoration must offer best-practice policies in one or more of five main areas: paid leave and wages; accommodations for pregnant and breastfeeding workers; child care; health and wellness benefits; and scheduling practices.
Family Forward NC defines best-practice policies through: the North Carolina Early Childhood Foundation’s Pathways to Grade-Level Reading Measures of Success and Action Frameworks; guidance from medical organizations such as the American Academy of Pediatrics or the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists; and guidance from our partners in early childhood organizations, including the Child Care Services Association, MomsRising, the North Carolina Breastfeeding Association, and others.
“It is important to us that we support our employees and their families in every way we can,” said Houston Summers, Partner at Sasser Restoration. “At Sasser, we do this by offering industry-leading paid parental leave, accommodations for our pregnant and new parent employees, and working with each individual to create a work-life balance that allows the employee and their family to thrive. We believe that it is important for our employees to feel as if they are part of a supportive community rather than just part of a company.”
Muffy Grant, executive director of the North Carolina Early Childhood Foundation said, “Employers want to attract and retain the best employees, and they want those employees to be happy and healthy.” Yet the U.S. is facing a massive talent shortage that will result in a deficit of millions of workers by 2030, and a childcare crisis coupled with a lack of support like paid leave mean pregnant workers and working parents and caregivers—especially women—are disproportionately forced to change jobs or leave the workforce entirely or are unable to rejoin the workforce after giving birth.
“For children, our future workforce, there is a critical window of time for brain development during the earliest years of life. In fact, the first 2,000 days of a child’s life are so defining that by the time that child turns eight, his or her third-grade reading outcomes can predict future academic achievement and career success,” Grant said. Decades of research have established that children need supportive and supported families and communities to build strong brains, along with health and development on track from birth and high-quality birth-through-age eight learning environments with regular attendance.
