Women's Funds Call for Improved Access to Child Care for Low-Income Women

WASHINGTON, D.C. (Sept. 27, 2010) -- Without affordable, reliable child care, the nation’s low-income working mothers, 72 percent of whom have children under age six, have little chance of finding good jobs and staying employed, according to Child Care Matters: Building Economic Security for Low-Income Women, a major policy report released on Monday by the Women’s Economic Security Campaign (WESC).

The report is the third in a series from WESC, which aims to elevate the struggles of low-income single mothers to the top of the public policy agenda. It calls on policymakers to create new legislation and strengthen existing tools to help low-income mothers access affordable, reliable child care—a vital piece of the puzzle for struggling women trying to build a better future for themselves and their families. It also calls for improvements in training and compensation for child care workers, who typically earn poverty-level wages.

According to data released this month by the Census Bureau, 38.5 percent of female-headed households with children were living in poverty in 2009 ($18,310 for a family of three), making the need for policies and programs that help these families a national imperative.

Child Care Matters was released during a national webinar featuring remarks from Shannon Rudisill, associate director of the Child Care Bureau at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Administration for Children and Families. She was joined by experts from across the country whose programs are helping low-income women access quality early care and education, including Patty Siegel, executive director of the California Child Care Resource & Referral Network, and Maria Whelan, president and CEO of Illinois Action for Children.

The report notes that without access to affordable, quality child care, low-income mothers have little chance of securing a job and staying employed, or getting the training they need to find more stable employment. Without good, consistent early care and education their children will not have the start in life they need to succeed in school and beyond. If workers lack reliable child care, businesses will also pay a price, including a less stable workforce and higher rates of absenteeism. Disruptions in child care for working parents cost U.S. businesses approximately $3 billion each year.

Child Care Matters calls for “a sustained effort by our political leaders and the private sector to elevate the child care needs of low-income women to the top of the public policy agenda. Any serious effort to create greater opportunity for these women, and to correct the systemic deficiencies that have held too many women back for too long, must include a greater focus on child care programs and practices that work.”

A variety of obstacles make it difficult for low-income women to secure reliable child care, including the high cost of quality care. For example, the average cost of full-day care for an infant represents about 41 percent of the median income for single mothers. In addition, a child care center often is not a realistic choice for low-income women who frequently have shifting work schedules and evening hours. As a result, these women are more likely to rely on informal care, which is typically provided by family and neighbors and is often less reliable and lower quality than formal settings.

While high quality early care is critical for all children, it is particularly important for children in low-income families and neighborhoods. The report notes that these families often lack the resources to purchase books, music and other brain-stimulating materials. Low-income families may also have low literacy levels and thus limited access to information on good early childhood practices, such as limiting television and encouraging imaginative play.

Unfortunately, the child care work force, which is 96.4 percent female, often lacks the skills and training to provide the care these children need, according to Child Care Matters. With wages that rarely climb above the poverty level, few of these workers have the incentive to go back to school and improve their skills. The average income nationally of a full-time child care worker is about $20,350—approximately 120 percent of the federal poverty level for a family of three. Only 20 of the 821 occupations reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics have lower average wages than do child care workers.

Several pieces of legislation currently under consideration by Congress would have a significant impact on the availability of quality child care for low-income women. These include expanding the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit so that is would support more low-income families, and increasing funding for the Child Care and Development Block Grant Program (CCDBG) and Head Start to help states and localities reduce waiting lists for subsidized child care.

Philanthropic and private entities also have a role to play, according to the report, which highlights programs and strategies throughout the country that are:

• Giving low-income women a more powerful voice in advocating for better, more affordable child care.
• Making sure children in low-income neighborhoods have access to state pre-school-for-all programs.
• Providing scholarships and other low-cost education and training options for child care workers.

“During a time of desperately lean state budgets and deficit concerns in Congress, we must all work together to ensure that the needs of low-income mothers and their children are not pushed aside for another day,” notes the report. “If we fail to give them the support necessary to secure good jobs and find quality care for their children, our country’s long-term economic health will suffer—and we will all pay the price.”

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The Women’s Economic Security Campaign is a joint effort of regionally diverse funds – Chicago Foundation for Women, Washington Area Women’s Foundation, the Women’s Foundation of California and the Women’s Foundation for a Greater Memphis. Working in collaboration with the Women’s Funding Network, WESC harnesses the voice and power of women’s foundations nationwide to improve the lives of low-income women. To read a copy of the report, click here. For more information, visit: http://www.womenseconomicsecurity.org.