Child care has always relied on the underpaid and undervalued labor of Black and brown women and the child care crisis will not be solved without their voices in creating an equitable child care system. Every single one of us counts on child care. Families will have time to rest, be together, and live full and vibrant lives in a fully funded system. Our communities are made richer when we take good care of our children and each other. Creating a child care system that works is essential to our families, kids, providers, and economy.
At 9to5 we hear over and over from our members and communities how the broken child care system jeopardizes their financial security, health, communities, and futures. Together we must work to solve the child care crisis from our communities to state and federal governments.
The Problem With Child Care
Historical
The current state of child care is rooted in racist and sexist stereotypes and history. After the Civil War norms shifted and pushed Black women into “gender appropriate” domestic jobs like child care and housekeeping in the homes of white people. Those expectations and stereotypes continue to be perpetuated today and Black women and other women of color are overrepresented in child care professions.
Take a deep dive into this issue and the legislation that has perpetuated a child care system perpetuated by racism and classism by reading Undervalued: A Brief History of Women’s Care Work and Child Care Policy in the United States.
See also:
- The Child Care Funding Cliff Has Been Centuries in the Making
- Racist Roots of Child Care with Ohio Organizing Collaborative
- The Racist History Behind Why Black Childcare Workers Are Underpaid
The Problem for Families
Child care is often the highest bill for working families and even though some help is available one in six children eligible for child care assistance under federal law receives it. Families must make difficult choices about care when they can’t afford or can’t access the care they need. Parents, particularly moms, must make difficult decisions and often leave the labor force, missing immediate and future earnings.
- Lack of Access to Child Care Impacts Child Well-Being
- Why is child care so expensive?
- Child Care Expenses Push an Estimated 134,000 Families Into Poverty Each Year
- How inaccessible childcare affects families and early childhood educators
- What the Child Care Crisis Does to Parents
- The Child Care Crisis Is Keeping Women Out of the Workforce
Problems for Workers and Providers
Child care workers are paid some of the lowest wages in the country and that simply does not reflect the value and necessity of their labor. Labor and day-to-day costs like rent, utilities, food, and supplies keep daycares running on razor-thin margins where they simply can’t afford to pay staff more and perpetuate the low-wage cycle. Families would not be able to afford childcare increases that would pay providers living wages and that is why legislation is necessary to provide workers with pay that reflects the value of their work.
Learn more:
- Why is child care so expensive?
- The Case for Better Compensation of Early Educators
- How inaccessible childcare affects families and early childhood educators
- Black workers, mothers leaving early education and child care jobs amid health risks, low pay
The Problem for the Economy
When parents can afford to work they contribute to the economy– and that is good for everyone. Investments in child care is how we build stronger communities and a strong economy.
- America’s Future Depends on Quality Child Care
- The child care crisis is costing the economy $122 billion a year
- The Covid-19 pandemic worsened a child care crisis, and it’s costing U.S. businesses billions
- Why The Child Care Crisis Is Actually An Economic Crisis
- U.S. Child Care Crisis Is Holding Back The Workforce
- The Economic Realities of Child Care
Policy Connections and Solutions
Our community thrives when we support each other, and this starts with the youngest of us. We do not exist in a vacuum – it takes a village, a community of care to thrive. Community care means shared responsibility and ensuring that all working families, caregivers, and child care providers are supported and valued in order to nurture the cornerstone of our society.
When we explore child care solutions, we must ensure that they are equitable, meet families’ needs, are affordable and high quality, accessible, and culturally responsive.
Read more:
- Equity Starts Early: Addressing Racial Inequities in Child Care and Early Education Policy
- Solutions to address looming child care crisis
- States Are Taking Action To Address the Child Care Crisis
- Top 5 Actions Governors Can Take To Address the Child Care Shortage