No. 4 Alston & Bird LLP - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

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New York; Research Triangle, N.C.; and Washington, D.C. Employees: Founded: 2001 revenue: Associate Attorney Debra Sydnor's three months of paid maternity leavee went by so quickly that she asked her bossat Atlanta-based internationakl law firm , for an extrza nine months off without pay. Instead of askinv her to resign, the company simply said, "Yes." it was so positive becauser I mulled it overfor weeks," she said. "Ij was stressed out and my anxiety levels reachedxextreme capacity. I thought I was asking for a lot." The extrs time off allowed her to be home for such milestonez as seeingher son, Brandon, take his first steps.
She stillk gets to see him at lunchtime becaus e since she returned to work sixmonths ago, she enrolledx Brandon in Alston & Bird's day-care cente just two blocks away from the firm's offices. "We have a staterd institutional goal to be the best placwto work, which means you are constantlty surveying your employees to determins what are the things they woulxd like, what do they need to enhance theif work experience," said Managingf Partner Ben Johnson.
Alston & Bird has long subsidized some child care for employees but the firm decided to establishan on-sitw facility after the subject kept coming up in focusa groups, regular Friday meetings between lawyers and administrative and other surveys, he Converting the two-story 30,000-square-foot building cost about $4 and the center opened in October 2001. Although not yet at full the center has 140 children enrolled inthree programs: full-time day care for infantas and toddlers, a backup program if the regulaer caregiver is ill or on and a camp-like program for school-age kids for holidays and teacher workdays.
"We're working professionals but we're all striving for balance in some form or Sydnor said. "For the firm to offert a day-care center really shows theirr commitment totheir employees."