Cheryl Oldham, senior vice president at the Center for Education and Workforce (CEW), recently testified with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Artificial Intelligence Commission on Competitiveness, Inclusion, and Innovation (AI Commission) on specific efforts that the U.S. Chamber Foundation has initiated as the country prepares students for the workforce and provides opportunities for others to reskill, with a particular focus on healthcare.

In this first installment of the series, we’ll review some of the mechanisms that are currently in place to help address a layered and complex situation of childcare.

Last week, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation and The Education Trust released the report "Equity in Childcare is Everyone's Business," which examines the importance of addressing the negative impacts of sexism and racism on the childcare industry and proposes ways in which state and local chambers, in partnership with child care providers, can address those issues while supporting children and families.

While corporations may use background policies or educational requirements as proxies for trust or ability, this isn’t borne out in the data. More importantly, it means that they are missing out on a highly committed, often diverse candidate pool that could contribute to their bottom line.