The Associated Press investigated Republican nominee Donald Trump’s claim that he provides free childcare to employees of his hotels and clubs, and found the programs he quoted are only offered to paying customers.
Trump reiterated his promise to make childcare more affordable during his speech in front of the Detroit Economic Club Monday. Trump said two months ago that he led the way in providing free on-site childcare facilities expressly for his employees.
“You know, it’s not expensive for a company to do it. You need one person or two people, and you need some blocks, and you need some swings and some toys,” Trump said. “It’s not an expensive thing, and I do it all over. And I get great people because of it. Because it’s a problem with a lot of other companies.”
Trump offered up two program names: Trump Kids and Trumpeteers. “They call ’em Trump Kids. Another one calls it Trumpeteers, if you can believe it. I have ’em. I actually have ’em, because I have a lot of different businesses.”
When the AP looked into the statement, investigators concluded he actually didn’t have them.
The AP obtained a collection of employee handbooks for workers at Trump hotels and golf courses, and none make any mention of a childcare program as a benefit to employees. The New York health department database has no record of any licensed childcare facilities company-wide.
The two programs Trump cited do exist, but only as resort amenities to Trump hotel and golf course guests. Trump Kids is a program offered by the Trump Hotel Collection, and is described by the company as “a special travel program designed to help make your next family vacation a big hit.” The program offers “kid-friendly amenities like kiddie cocktails, coloring books and no-tear bath amenities.”
“No, there’s no child care,” housekeeper for Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas Maria Jaramillo told the AP. “It would make it much more easy to take our kids to daycare at work,” Jaramillo added. “If they have child care, at least they should tell us.”
The Trumpeteer program is a unique program for the Trump National Golf Club in Charlotte, N.C. The program was “created specifically for our youngest members, ages three to twelve, which offers daily and evening child care, monthly newsletters and weekly events!”
The Trump Organization Vice President Jill Martin responded with this statement, “The Trump Organization is very proud of the family-friendly environment it fosters throughout its portfolio,” she said. “The policies and practices allowing employees to enjoy a healthy work-life balance vary from property to property. We take an individualized approach to helping employees manage family and work responsibilities.”
The campaign didn’t return a request for comment.
Trump credited his daughter for his childcare policy. Ivanka Trump touted Trump’s treatment of mothers in the workplace, “When a woman becomes a mother, she is supported, not shut out.”
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