How can we improve the childcare crisis?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The insane waitlists for daycare.

The nanny shortage.

The lack of parental leave.

What can reasonably be done to even take a step in the right direction?

Stay home and you take care of your children. I did. Why can't you?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Pay teachers and childcare workers more. They can make almost as much working in fast food but are responsible for the health, safety, and education of your children.

Not in DC-they are getting a taxpayer-paid raise that was voted in by City Council-about an extra 6 bucks an hour for a full-time child care teacher, who currently only needs a high school diploma and a CDA certificate. This will be paid in a lump sum this fall but will continue yearly.

And we are still having trouble hiring! Where I work this will bring their hourly rate to over 30/hr plus excellent benefits.

$30 per hour to teach 30 kids? That’s atrocious. I made $25/hour with excellent benefits doing 1:1 in school almost 20 years ago. $30 is a terrible pay rate especially in DC where cost of living is so high. No wonder people are leaving. You also shouldn’t be trusting that many kids to someone with just a hs diploma. DC needs some better priorities.

30 Kids? Where are you getting that? No, 8 or 10, depending on the age. And that's with a co-teacher.

Ok, my mistake, but that’s still not enough. They need at least $50 per hour to make it more appealing. I wouldn’t apply there. You might get people but they won’t be highly qualified.

My husband and i have graduate degrees and I just hit $50/hr a decade into my career; he still hasn't. I think you would get very qualified applicants, but I can't see funding that without actually taxing the rich substantially more, since it's so far above the median wage.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Paying childcare workers should be tax deductible by companies or individuals. Large companies should be able to put childcare workers on their payroll and offer them the same benefits as other employees. This would encourage more workplaces to have onsite childcare and improve the salaries/benefits of people who provide childcare so that they can afford to stay in the job.

Individuals who hire a nanny should be able to deduct her salary and include her as a member of the household on their own health insurance. Again, this would solve a lot of the problems of people being paid under the table illegally, not paying into social security, not having unemployment benefits, and not having health insurance. It would make being a nanny a much more viable long term career.

Paying under the table is the employer's fault. I would never consider hiring a domestic employee under the table. I have a house cleaner once a week and I take out FICA, State & Federal taxes and she wishes her other cheap skate customers would do the same. Stop blaming the system because you're breaking the law.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The insane waitlists for daycare.

The nanny shortage.

The lack of parental leave.

What can reasonably be done to even take a step in the right direction?

Stay home and you take care of your children. I did. Why can't you?

OP here. I did for the first year, but I'm honestly not concerned about my personal situation. I feel so deeply for other moms and families that struggle over this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The insane waitlists for daycare.

The nanny shortage.

The lack of parental leave.

What can reasonably be done to even take a step in the right direction?

Stay home and you take care of your children. I did. Why can't you?

Since you're fundamentally uninterested in recognizing any problem here, you might want to move along from this discussion.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Paying childcare workers should be tax deductible by companies or individuals. Large companies should be able to put childcare workers on their payroll and offer them the same benefits as other employees. This would encourage more workplaces to have onsite childcare and improve the salaries/benefits of people who provide childcare so that they can afford to stay in the job.

Individuals who hire a nanny should be able to deduct her salary and include her as a member of the household on their own health insurance. Again, this would solve a lot of the problems of people being paid under the table illegally, not paying into social security, not having unemployment benefits, and not having health insurance. It would make being a nanny a much more viable long term career.

OP here. I was just reading this morning that hiring a refugee is a tax deduction- employers can deduct up to 40% of a refugee's pay. It got me thinking there should be a way to encourage refugees to work in childcare. I wonder if the deduction would apply to families hiring a refugee nanny legally via w2. It seems like it could be a win-win for nanny and family.

A new form of indentured servitude. Refugees should only have subservient jobs. No white collar jobs for them. I need someone to be my maid, housekeeper, nanny, for pittance. Quite a few refugees are as well educated as you and some are better educated. You are responsible for your childcare not the taxpayer!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Pay teachers and childcare workers more. They can make almost as much working in fast food but are responsible for the health, safety, and education of your children.

Agree this is a core problem- but where would the money come from?

All those with children of school age.l

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Pay teachers and childcare workers more. They can make almost as much working in fast food but are responsible for the health, safety, and education of your children.

Not in DC-they are getting a taxpayer-paid raise that was voted in by City Council-about an extra 6 bucks an hour for a full-time child care teacher, who currently only needs a high school diploma and a CDA certificate. This will be paid in a lump sum this fall but will continue yearly.

And we are still having trouble hiring! Where I work this will bring their hourly rate to over 30/hr plus excellent benefits.

$30 per hour to teach 30 kids? That’s atrocious. I made $25/hour with excellent benefits doing 1:1 in school almost 20 years ago. $30 is a terrible pay rate especially in DC where cost of living is so high. No wonder people are leaving. You also shouldn’t be trusting that many kids to someone with just a hs diploma. DC needs some better priorities.

30 Kids? Where are you getting that? No, 8 or 10, depending on the age. And that's with a co-teacher.

Ok, my mistake, but that’s still not enough. They need at least $50 per hour to make it more appealing. I wouldn’t apply there. You might get people but they won’t be highly qualified.

My husband and i have graduate degrees and I just hit $50/hr a decade into my career; he still hasn't. I think you would get very qualified applicants, but I can't see funding that without actually taxing the rich substantially more, since it's so far above the median wage.

Too much money gets wasted, unaccounted for, and the school boards and high level boe members are overpaid. Teachers doing the hands on job should make as much or more. They always have these huge budgets but the schools are only getting worse, it never makes sense. I won’t work in public education anymore even for $50 I can make twice that in home based.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Paying childcare workers should be tax deductible by companies or individuals. Large companies should be able to put childcare workers on their payroll and offer them the same benefits as other employees. This would encourage more workplaces to have onsite childcare and improve the salaries/benefits of people who provide childcare so that they can afford to stay in the job.

Individuals who hire a nanny should be able to deduct her salary and include her as a member of the household on their own health insurance. Again, this would solve a lot of the problems of people being paid under the table illegally, not paying into social security, not having unemployment benefits, and not having health insurance. It would make being a nanny a much more viable long term career.

OP here. I was just reading this morning that hiring a refugee is a tax deduction- employers can deduct up to 40% of a refugee's pay. It got me thinking there should be a way to encourage refugees to work in childcare. I wonder if the deduction would apply to families hiring a refugee nanny legally via w2. It seems like it could be a win-win for nanny and family.

A new form of indentured servitude. Refugees should only have subservient jobs. No white collar jobs for them. I need someone to be my maid, housekeeper, nanny, for pittance. Quite a few refugees are as well educated as you and some are better educated. You are responsible for your childcare not the taxpayer!

I guess my initial thought was through a different lens. I was thinking that nannies typically make $25-30hr which is more than a lot of jobs refugees go right in to. Another thought I had was if they could bring their own children to work, it would eliminate their own need for childcare. If they could live-in, it would be housing and pay.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Paid parental leave is a start. Also, prioritizing children instead of two-income families for those who cannot live near family.

More ways to outsource is not the solution.

Why should the rest of us who took care of our children pay for you to stay home. Bull! As long as there are Republicans this will never happen.

[Anonymous]

I think 35 hour work weeks should be standard, then parents could stagger work hours. DH and I stagger, but can't match super short school hours. Schools shouldn't let out before 3:30 IMO.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Paid parental leave is a start. Also, prioritizing children instead of two-income families for those who cannot live near family.

More ways to outsource is not the solution.

Why should the rest of us who took care of our children pay for you to stay home. Bull! As long as there are Republicans this will never happen.

Right! I want to get rid of social security for non working spouses.

[Anonymous]

The entitled people on this thread is mind boggling!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Pay teachers and childcare workers more. They can make almost as much working in fast food but are responsible for the health, safety, and education of your children.

I'm a teacher and there is no ways I would make almost as much in the fast food industry.

Seriously, that first statement shows a stunning level of ignorance about how much teachers are paid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Pay teachers and childcare workers more. They can make almost as much working in fast food but are responsible for the health, safety, and education of your children.

I believe we should incentivize education for childcare workers by using student loan forgiveness programs or grants to attract recent grads or students for x number of years. Then we get educated, competent childcare workers and lower the student debt burden. That would help.