Child care at the workplace helps companies recruit and retain employees, reduces absenteeism, benefits workers and may improve productivity -- but it can be costly. In some cases, an overlooked alternative, child-care cooperatives, may be just the ticket, says E. Kim Coontz, of UC Davis' Center for Cooperatives. Consortia, or child-care networks cooperatively arranged among companies, may help small employers or employers with few parents among their workers provide care near the work site. Employers might try another approach: parent cooperatives, in which parents are involved with the day-to-day management of the facility, with the employer offering space, services, etc. Employers can further benefit if the program is opened to the general public. "It's an excellent public relations tool. It says 'We like kids,' " says Coontz.