No economic recovery without child care

Everyone talks about essential jobs and essential workers, but you don't hear about Child care providers as essential.

Child care providers earn on average $11 per hour, more than half qualify for public benefits such as food assistance or Medicaid, and most have no health care benefits.

Child care providers are paid less than dog walkers, yet they care for our most precious commodity: young children. They work tirelessly to care for and help develop skills and cognitive functions of the children in their care. They have degrees in early childhood education but they are called babysitters.

Policymakers need to invest in a system that provides a living wage for child care providers and also makes high quality child care available to every child.

Illinois is reopening, but not many of the child care centers. The ones that are open are not meeting financial demands due to restrictions on class size, increased costs for supplies and paying double the staff with half the children.

Child care providers are essential to our economic recovery and they deserve your respect and support.

Carrie Rafalski

Hoffman Estates