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Part 1 Organizing a Quality Child Care Program
women become gainfully employed. If a trainee
has young children, child care will be a neces-
sary part of helping her participate in training. It
will also support her efforts to find eventual
employment.
The expanded need for child care services is
directly linked to the movement of women into
the workforce. As women develop interesting,
satisfying careers, some are reluctant to risk
losing opportunities by staying home when their
children are young.
Family Economic Need for Two
Incomes
Economic conditions have made it more dif-
ficult for young families to establish comfortable
standards of living. Many of the new jobs cre-
ated have been minimum wage jobs with no
health insurance and few other benefits. Young
families, especially those headed by individuals
without special job skills or advanced education, find it difficult to survive financially
without income from both spouses. Even when both spouses are working at min-
imum wage jobs, the family will still have an income level that is below the federal
poverty standards.
Many Americans have dreams of home ownership, a college education for their
children, adequate health and retirement insurance, a comfortable lifestyle, and finan-
cial stability. These have become increasingly difficult to achieve on a single income.
For many young families, building a family life similar to what they experienced
growing up requires the income of two working parents. The result is a need for child
care while both parents work.
Two-career families often delay parenthood until their careers are well established.
Today, it is not uncommon for women in their thirties to be starting their families. At
this point in their lives, these “older” families have an established lifestyle and finan-
cial security that they are unwilling to jeopardize. Although the “juggling act”
required to balance career and parenthood is difficult and stressful, these families feel
it is worth it. They have contributed to the increased demand for child care services.
Why Is There a Need for Quality Child Care?
Currently, in the United States, the quality of child care varies widely. Regulations
for child care services are different in each state. The current system of both private
and public programs has resulted in many choices for some families and no room at
all for others. A large amount of information now exists on the positive outcomes for
children who attend quality preschool programs. Research indicates the impact of
good early childhood care and educational experience can be long lasting, 1-3.
1-2 Today, a large number of women with
young children are in the labor force and need
quality care for their children.