Here's what some of Springfield's biggest employers plan to do for parents stuck at home

As the fall semester approaches, school districts across the country have been tasked with striking a difficult balance between making sure children can effectively learn while also limiting the spread of COVID-19.

In Springfield, the public school district came up with a compromise for at least the first quarter of the school year: students will be able to mask up and physically attend school two days a week and then stay home for virtual instruction the other three days.

That means many working parents (some of whom took to the streets to protest) will have to either stay home three days a week or figure out some kind of alternative.

The News-Leader reached out to several of Springfield's largest employers to ask what they will do to accommodate employees who have to stay home with their kids this fall. Here's what they had to say:

Missouri State University

The city's largest university is offering in-person classes this fall, meaning most faculty and staff will have to be on campus at least part of the time.

Missouri State University President Clif Smart said he supports the plan put in place by Springfield Public Schools, but it will require some adjustments from the university to meet the needs of its roughly 3,400 local employees.

Smart said staff members like custodians, groundskeepers and maintenance workers will be encouraged to do whatever is necessary like working odd hours, shifting to four 10-hour shifts or taking advantage of a federal program that offers workers two-thirds pay if they have to stay home because of child-care issues related to COVID-19.

"We’ve really encouraged flexibility on the staff side," Smart said.

As for faculty members, Smart said anyone teaching a class that is level 200 or above can convert that class to a blended class that meets one or two days a week in-person and then relies on online instruction the other days.

The university leaders still want in-person 100-level classes to remain in-person.

"We still think it’s important to deliver seated classes, particularly for our freshmen. We know they do better in them," Smart said.

O'Reilly Auto Parts

At O'Reilly Auto Parts, a "large amount" of the company's corporate workforce has been working from home since the pandemic began in March, according to Mark Merz, vice president of investor relations, financial reporting and planning.

Merz said those employees would be able to continue working from home during the fall, and the company would try to be flexible with all of its workers during these unprecedented times.

"We'll just continue to evaluate the environment and make appropriate decisions based on what we're seeing," Merz said.

According to data compiled by the Springfield Business Development Corporation, O'Reilly Auto Parts employed a little more than 2,000 people in the Springfield area as of the summer of 2018.

Springfield Public Schools

While Springfield Public Schools was thinking of its 25,000 students when it made its plans for how to go forward this fall, the school district also had its 3,500 employees to consider.

With many teachers and staff members who are also parents to young children, the district is exploring ways it can best support its employees.

Penney Rector, chief human resources officer at SPS, said the district's plan will depend largely on the results of two surveys that were due Friday: one asking parents whether they wanted their children to attend school exclusively online or a mix of online and in-person instruction; and the other assessing the needs and availability of employees.

"We are here to meet the needs of families and students," Rector said. "We have to first understand what those needs are, so we can then marry those with our staffing needs and availability."

For employees who aren't able to work, Rector said there are options like a long-term leave of absence or a leave through the federal program that offers workers two-thirds pay.

CoxHealth

CoxHealth employs 12,500 people throughout its system, the majority of whom work in Springfield.

Spokesperson Kaitlyn McConnell said Wednesday that the hospital system was surveying employees to find out their needs and "aggressively pursuing creative solutions."

McConnell said CoxHealth is looking into creating new services to help fill in gaps with student care.

"Our most precious resource is our employees, and we know the most precious thing in their lives is most often their children," McConnell said. "As area schools release their plans for the start of the school year, CoxHealth knows that many of the system’s employees are anxious about what the next few months will mean for their children, and how the changes will affect their jobs. We also know that it’s important to keep our staff members at work and able to care for the community."

Mercy Hospital

At Mercy Hospital, spokeswoman Sonya Kullmann said a Facebook page was created where co-workers can post about child care needs and offer help. 

Kullmann said Mercy leadership had been in contact with employees about their needs and was working to develop some solutions for the fall.

"Caring for our co-workers so they can care for their families and our community is of utmost importance at Mercy," Kullmann said. "With many varied back-to-school plans across Mercy Springfield Communities, we know our co-workers are making some difficult decisions about what’s best for their children."

The Springfield Business Journal reported that Mercy Springfield Communities, which includes Mercy Hospital, had 9,796 employees as of December 2019.

Others

A spokesperson for Bass Pro Shops, which the Springfield Business Development Corporation listed with 3,341 local employees in 2018, said the company was still finalizing its plans.

Walmart employs more than 5,000 people in the Springfield metropolitan area. A message sent to Walmart's media relations department did not elicit a response.