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Access to child care and securing a solid workforce at child care centers is a 鈥渃risis鈥� for which many federal and state entities have been searching for solutions.

For advocates and economic experts, the role of businesses and employers is becoming more and more important to not only ending in Ohio, but also keeping the state from taking a big economic hit because of it.

In a recent panel discussion hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, policy advisors and local child care advocates emphasized the need for public-private partnerships, and creating more incentives for the workforce to stay in child care.

鈥淭he question really isn鈥檛 whose responsibility is it, but in whose best interest it is, and there鈥檚 a real business case for employers,鈥� said Sarah Savage, senior policy analyst and policy advisor for the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.

Savage said on-site care and subsidies for child care are 鈥渞arely offered鈥� even among organizations with 5,000 employees or more, citing a private study from 2023 by .

That study showed 10% of employers with 5,000+ employees offer on-site care, with 40% of businesses that size offering none of the services listed, including child care referrals, tutoring, subsidies or reimbursement.

Businesses have their own roles to play, but the child care sector can鈥檛 improve without first looking at its own staffing issues, according to Kyle Fee, policy advisor for the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland.

Fee said the workforce struggles are a 鈥渒ey constraint in the child care situation,鈥� with many of the patterns shown in workforce retainment and pay found to be 鈥渢ypical of low-wage occupations.鈥�

Citing a 2019 national survey of early care and education, Fee said 1/3 of child care centers had staff turnover of 20% or higher, with turnover higher in centers with lower pay. That turnover was also linked to the combination of pay and the amount of child care and educations services offered at those centers, according to Fee.

The profile of the workforce shows primarily younger female workers, who are 鈥渕ore diverse in terms of race and ethnicity than the broader workforce,鈥� Fee said.

In 2022, the child care workforce had the 10th lowest annual median wage nationally, just ahead of fast food workers and cashiers, and Fee said estimates for Ohio 鈥渢end to be slightly lower.鈥�

鈥淭he pay for a child care worker does not provide a living wage for single adult plus one child in any state,鈥� Fee said.

Those numbers account for those that stay in the workforce, a consistently decreasing population, according to Fee鈥檚 analysis.

He found that from 2010-2022, an average of about 15% of child care workers left the occupation, above the 8-9% of preschool and kindergarten teachers who left their profession in the same period.

In 2022, job turnover in the child care sector was 65% higher than turnover in 鈥渢ypical occupations,鈥� according to Fee.

On average, half the workers who leave the child care profession don鈥檛 re-enter the workforce at all.

鈥淭he emphasis here again is pointing on the churn among child care workers in and out of the workforce that needs further exploration,鈥� he said.

Groups in Ohio are attempting to improve the wage conditions for workers, but also keep up the quality of centers to persuade more families to enroll.

Nancy Mendez, president and chief executive officer of Northeast Ohio child care advocacy organization Starting Point, said they have been working on collaborations with Cuyahoga County to provide pre-K scholarships for those up to 300% of the federal poverty line and have used federal ARPA dollars to provide scholarships, along with bonuses for child care staff.

鈥淲e鈥檙e trying to do our best to help stabilize this system,鈥� said Mendez, whose organization helps child care centers maintain quality and connects parents to services in the area.

But improving wages means increasing tuition which can lower enrollment as families lack the money to keep up with rising costs of child care and everything else, leading to a never-ending cycle for centers, according to Mendez.

鈥淭here鈥檚 this chicken-and-egg thing here that鈥檚 going on that they really can鈥檛 solve,鈥� Mendez said.

The organization saw the COVID-19 pandemic鈥檚 impacts on many economic sectors throughout the state, with child care seeing a hard and sustained effect.

鈥淲e were waiting for this tsunami of low enrollment and staffing issues to kind of move on with everybody else, but what we saw was our workforce issues just continue to exacerbate,鈥� Mendez said.

Starting Point heard from 60% of the child care centers and homes they work with, who reported they were 鈥渙perating at low enrollment and mostly because of staffing issues.鈥�

To break even, Mendez said child care facilities need to be at more than 70% enrollment at least.

The lack of affordable child care combined with the staff shortages have created a situation that Mendez and policy advisors on the panel say will have its impacts on the economy. Mendez said neighboring states like Pennsylvania and Michigan have seen estimated economic losses of more than $2 billion because of a lack of child care.

鈥淚 wouldn鈥檛 be surprised if we鈥檙e looking at about $2 billion that we lose annually in Ohio due to breakdown in child care or the inability to access child care,鈥� she added.

to try to create an employer-state partnership on child care costs, along with efforts to create a tax credit targeted at child care and family costs and even a tax credit to Ohioans who contribute to child care facilities. Many of the measures are Republican-led, giving them more likelihood for passage in the GOP supermajority House and Senate.

However, the Ohio General Assembly is on break until the Fall, likely until after the November election. So, the measures won鈥檛 see possible action until the tail end of the General Assembly鈥檚 term. If no action is taken by December, the measures would need to be re-introduced in the new year.

is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Ohio Capital Journal maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor David Dewitt for questions: [email protected]. Follow Ohio Capital Journal on and .

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