Nonprofit Newswire | Fragile Economics of Child Care

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March 1, 2010; Washington Post | This article which talks about the economic impact of the snows in Washington D.C., does a good job of discussing the fragility of many child care providers in this economy. We have noted this before numerous times in the newswire—this is likely one of the more vulnerable fields in which nonprofits operate right now, in that they are impacted severely by declining enrollments as a result of joblessness. One problem we have to consider is the degree to which a seasoned supportive infrastructure for children will be available when jobs return. An evocative excerpt from the article—“in one icy blast, the snows of early February showed anew how razor-thin the economic margins can be. Some parents didn’t get paid during the storms and couldn’t afford that week’s tuition. Others, like Izuka, worked but had to hire fill-in child care that cost extra. Add to such worries those of child-care workers, who earn an average of $9.32 an hour nationally. Some wondered whether they would be paid for the days their centers were closed.” Meanwhile in Minnesota, advocates are fighting a proposed $12 million dollar cut to child care subsidies, pointing out that “in the last few years” 2,200 child care providers have been lost. NPQ is worried that this trend is occurring with far too little national attention.—Ruth McCambridge