Fixing child care crisis starts with better pay for workers

During the COVID epidemic, early childhood educators and child care providers — largely women, many of whom are women of color — were lauded for their contributions. This adulation was short-lived. Now, once again, these providers are being taken for granted.

Even as the demand for child care will likely increase as a result of expanded state eligibility, child care workers continue to be paid so little that nearly 50 percent of them qualify for public benefits, and approximately 25 percent are food-insecure. This creates an untenable situation that forces many to look for other jobs, threatening the ability of child care centers to stay open and home care providers to continue to provide care.

Approximately 100,000 New Yorkers are newly eligible for state subsidies under the new guidelines, which expanded to include families earning up to 85 percent of the state median income, or approximately $93,200 for a family of four.

But Gov. Kathy Hochul’s proposed 2024 budget does nothing to address this brewing crisis. Instead, she seems to have forgotten a basic truth: New York’s workforce relies on child care, and child care relies on early education and care providers.

Throughout the state, the average wage for child care providers in New York is less than $17 an hour, approximately $35,000 a year — and only approximately $27,000 upstate. This is far below the state’s median income of $110,000 for a family of four. One day care agency administrator recently mentioned to me that her master’s level teachers make only $20 an hour. These professionals are expected to work for almost nothing. However, there is no money in the current proposed state budget to help increase the wages of providers.

Without more providers, childcare cannot become more accessible. The cost of care is apt to rise, making care less accessible for those above the subsidy level. This will continue to create inequality of access to care.

The average cost of care for an infant in New York is among the highest in the country. According to the state

Office of Children and Family Services, the cost of care for an infant is approximately $1,600 a month in a day care setting and approximately $1,300 a month in a home day care. That adds up to between $16,900 and $21,900 a year.

We know that high-quality care is associated with lower use of public benefits for adults, higher rates of high school and college graduation, and lower likelihood of engagement in the criminal justice system. But many parents simply cannot afford it, or find it, even if they are eligible for subsidies.

We already cannot meet the current demands for child care. Between 2019 and 2022, there was a 20.9% reduction in the capacity of home-based child care providers. Nationally, 52% of providers said they could provide more care if they could hire more workers. In New York, 90% of centers and 70% of home care providers reported last March that they could provide more care if they could afford to hire more workers.

Though the governor’s current proposed budget includes refundable tax credits for child care businesses, without workers it will be difficult to set up a new child care businesses or expand an existing one. Let’s treat early education and care providers with respect and provide them with the financial remuneration that they deserve.