Working Families
Access to affordable, reliable, and high-quality early learning and child care opportunities provides working families with better job stability and overall economic security.
Here are five things to know about child care and working families.
- According to population data, between 1.2 and 1.5 million workers are affected by inadequate child care options each month. This results in anywhere from 9 to 26 million hours of potential work lost due to child care challenges in any given week (or 468 million to 1.4 billion hours a year.) [KPMB study 2024]
- According to polls, 59% of part-time or non-working parents say they would go back to work full-time if their child had access to quality child care at a reasonable cost.
- In 2024, the average annual cost of child care was $13,128, a 29% increase since 2020. [Child Care Aware of America, reported in the 19th]
- Child care helps parents return to or stay at work, which can generate an additional $94,000 in lifetime earnings for mothers.
- Data from the Small Business Majority indicates that child care related challenges impact career trajectories with 30% of employees quitting a job or turning down an offer and 27% of employees turning down promotions.
Learn more:
Posts
STATEMENT: First Five Years Fund In Support of the Newly Introduced Child Care and Development Block Grant Reauthorization Act of 2024
Washington – Today, Senator Deb Fischer (R-NE) introduced legislation to reauthorize the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act (CCDBG), the primary federal child care program that helps working families …
Essential Excerpts: Child Care Quotes From The Hill
As we monitored hearings on Capitol Hill this week, it was striking to see how many of them featured the issue of child care. From the House Appropriations Committee to …
Top Themes from the National Child Care Innovation Summit
“I’m here because child care is not only a social issue or a women’s issue. It is also an economic issue. In fact, I’d argue it’s one of the most …
Survey Sheds Light on What Parents and Child Care Providers Want Elected Officials to Know
The RAPID Survey Project recently released the RAPID 4th Anniversary Special Report: What parents of young children and child care providers want elected officials to know. RAPID is a national …
The First Five Questions For: Caitlin Codella and Liat Krawczyk
In this month’s FFYF’s First Five Questions series – which brings together interesting leaders, experts, and voices together to talk about child care challenges and solutions – Executive Director Sarah …
The First Five Things to Know: The Child Care and Development Block Grant
Millions of families need child care in order to work, but many simply can’t afford it. This leads to parents having to reduce the number of hours they work or …
2024 CCDBG State Fact Sheets
First Five Years Fund released a new collection of fact sheets from all 50 states detailing how the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) helps families and kids in …
How we’re celebrating Mother’s Day and Provider Appreciation Day
This weekend is both Mother’s Day AND Provider Appreciation Day so now is the time to recognize the important work of both moms and the early educators and providers they …
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Program Overview
TANF provides grants to states to help design and operate programs that support low-income families, including through increased access to child care and early education opportunities, which helps parents to …
White House Highlights Wide Range of Approaches for Child Care Support
On the one-year anniversary of President Biden’s Executive Order on Increasing Access to High-Quality Care and Supporting Caregivers (Care EO), the White House brought together governors, advocates, and business leaders …
FFYF Statement on White House’s “Making Care Work”
On Wednesday, April 17, the White House brought together governors, advocates, and business leaders to underscore the important role child care plays not only in supporting working families but in …
The Fundamental Role of Child Care in Supporting Women
Last month, the Center for American Progress (CAP) published a new report, “Playbook for the Advancement of Women in the Economy.” Aligning with Women’s History Month, this “playbook” provides a …
