DQ respond
viky
single_parents_and_affordable_childcare.pptxSingle Parents and Affordable Childcare
Affordable Childcare Assists the Single Parent with Obtaining and Keeping a Job
Many single parents work full-time but are unable to afford adequate childcare.
In order to work outside of the home, a parent must have affordable, adequate, and reliable childcare.
These circumstances have created an increased need for affordable childcare (Moodie-Dyer, 2011).
“Childcare has probably been the primary barrier to employment for single parents. Simply put, a parent cannot simultaneously care for preschool children and be at work’ (Hooten, 2002).
Having access to quality childcare will dramatically affect a single parent’s ability to find and maintain employment, as well as the ability to mobilize upward, and the prospect of becoming self-sufficient (Hooten, 2002).
A lack of accessible, affordable, and quality childcare is an issue affecting many single parents.
To remain actively and successfully employed, single parents need affordable childcare.
Not Many Resources are Available to Assist Single Parents with Affordable Childcare
Half or more of the children growing up in the U.S. today will spend some or all of their childhood in a single parent family (Casey & Maldonado, 2012).
Given all the statistical research provided by websites, journals, and magazines on the increasing number of single parents, there still is not a plethora of childcare resources.
The government does not make childcare available to suit the needs of the single parent which can become a difficult choice between family and work (Hooten, 2002).
Two-parent households have the advantage of pooling together resources where both parents can work and share the expense of childcare or one parent can stay home while the other goes to work (Hooten, 2002).
A single parent’s only options are to pay traditional childcare fees, depend on a relative or friend, or turn to the government for sparse funding.
For many single parents, there is not enough funds to afford traditional childcare, there are no dependable relatives or friends, and the parent’s income may exceed the limit for governmental childcare assistance.
Many Single Parents make Minimal Wages and Cannot Afford the Costly Expense of Childcare
Childcare is broken down into different types:
Childcare centers – regulated by the particular state of residence. These centers are inspected at least once a year and must meet certain standards and requirements.
Family childcare providers – care for children in a private home setting. These arrangements are usually not regularly monitored and can be very risky.
In home care by sitter or nanny – care for children directly in the parent’s home.
All three options require a specified fee to care for the child.
For many single parents, actual or potential earnings are too little to pay for childcare. In 2011, among the states, the average annual cost for full-time care for an infant ranged from $4,591 (MS) to $20,178 (DC) for center care, and from $4,551 (AR) to $12,329 (DC) for family care (Casey & Maldonado, 2012).
For single parents employed full-time for the entire year of 2011: among those without a high school diploma, median earnings for single mothers, $20,000, and $26,000 for single fathers. Single mothers with a high school high school diploma, median earnings were about $25,000 for single mothers, and $38,000 for single fathers. Single mothers with a bachelors degree or higher, median earnings were about $53,000, and $62,000 for single fathers (Casey & Maldonado, 2012).
The poverty rate is much higher for single parent families.
There is a huge barrier for many single parents, especially mothers to find affordable childcare.
Limited Government offered Childcare Assistance Programs Maintain a Very Low Income Limit and Long Waiting Lists
Currently, childcare assistance takes the form of Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) that provides childcare subsidies for low-income families. In each particular state, the subsidies are handled by the Department of Social Services. Head-start preschool program is also funded through this block grant.
Financial eligibility for childcare subsidy is based on family size and gross income.
In Maryland, a family of 2 cannot exceed $24, 277 to qualify for this assistance.
Andria Swanson, a single parent in Washington D.C. has waited in line for more than nine hours causing her to miss school and college classes to try and apply for a childcare subsidy. She missed so much time from work that she lost her job, had to live in a shelter, and receive welfare benefits (Schulte, 2013).
An estimated 25,000 people apply for childcare subsidies every year in Washington D.C. but the city only has seven caseworkers to determine eligibility.
Washington D.C. officials have commented on the flawed system and its inadequate funding and the lack of childcare centers that are willing to accept the vouchers.
As budgets have been cut and the number of people needing childcare assistance has increased, waiting lists in some states have stretched to two years (Schulte, 2013).
In virtually every state, studies have found that getting and keeping a childcare subsidy can be close to impossible (Schulte, 2013).
Affordable Childcare is a Real Crisis
Plenty of statistical research has been conducted which illustrates the dire necessity to have affordable childcare for working parents.
“Government response to this need has involved a number of stop-and-start policy approaches, which have led to a fractured child care system that makes it difficult for families to find quality, accessible, affordable care” (Moodie-Dyer, 2011).
“Alternatively, care that is unstable, unreliable, or of low quality presents a serious barrier to parents’ employment and may be detrimental to the well-being of their children, many of whom are at substantial risk for a host of negative outcomes” (Crosby, Gennetian, & Huston, 2005).
Affordable childcare should be an option for every single parent.
Affordable childcare allows single parents to fully participate in the labor market and creates better job retention.
The rate of single parent families will continue to increase so affordable, quality, and reliable childcare should be a right afforded to each of these parents.
References
Casey, T. & Maldonado, L. (2012). Worst off – single parent families in the United States. A cross national comparison of single parenthood in the U.S. and sixteen other high-income countries. Retrieved April 9, 2014 from http://www.legalmomentum.org
Crosby, D.A., Gennetian, L., & Huston, A.C. (2005). Child care assistance policies can affect the use of center-based care for children in low-income families. Applied developmental science, 9(2), 86-106/ doi: 10.1207/s1532480xads0902_4
Hooten, A. (2002). From welfare recipient to childcare worker: balancing work and family under TANF. Texas journal of women & the law, 12(1), 121.
Schulte, B. (2013, May 15). In D.C., parents miss work, lose jobs trying to get child-c are subsidy. The Washington Post. Retrieved from
http :// www.washingtonpost.com/local/parents-miss-work-lose-jobs-trying-to-get-child-care-subsidy/2013/05/15/3031ac2c-ba59-11e2-b94c-b684dda07add_story.html
