Access to quality, affordable childcare allows parents to remain in the workforce

Access to quality, affordable childcare allows parents to remain in the workforce

Those who care for children, the elderly, and people with disabilities are vital for the healthy functioning of our economy. Access to affordable, high-quality care allows individuals to enter the labor force, reduce absenteeism at work, and retain more of their income to spend on basic necessities like food and housing.

Despite record levels of female labor force participation in 2023, data suggest that working mothers tend to take on a disproportionate share of caregiving responsibilities, scaling back hours in the workplace or leaving the workforce altogether for extended periods of time. Employment changes like these can negatively impact a woman’s lifetime earnings and career trajectory. 

Council of Economic Advisers (CEA) analysis of Current Population Survey data found that, among employed mothers of children under age six, 27 percent are working part-time compared to 11 percent of employed fathers of young children and 21 percent of all employed women. 

On the anniversary of the Equal Pay Act, the CEA published a blog highlighting the challenges remaining for women in the labor market and the role that care burdens play in gender-based wage gaps across the income distribution.

Source: https://www.whitehouse.gov/cea/written-materials/2024/04/17/seven-facts-about-the-economics-of-child-care/

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