ISSUE:

Overview:

Quite clearly, childcare is an unavoidable issue if we are to make a welfare-to-work program succeed. There is not enough subsidized care to begin to cover the demand. Nor are there enough openings for children under two, subsidized or otherwise. A mother may have to wait upwards of three years for subsidized child care, time she doesn't have if welfare time limits are headed. Furthermore, quality care is elusive, even for those with money. And even among subsidized programs, many job search activities are not covered.

It is in the interest of society at large to make it possible for a mother who wants to stay at home with her child to do just that, regardless of her economic or marital status (please see Moral Responsibility for further discussion on this point.) But, if we as a society are going to say that all poor mothers must leave home and be bread-winners first and foremost, then it is very important to make sure that our children receive safe, affordable, and quality care.

Waiting Lists
Livable Wages
* Affordable Housing
Moral Responsibility
Job Skills
Job Competition
Paid v. Non-paid
Job Structure
* Economic Structure
Debt/Credit Problems
Discrimination
Domestic Violence
Poverty
Substance Abuse
* Sexuality
Human Neediness
Societal Guilt

Truth be told, even economically well-off people with unlimited resources at their disposal have difficulty finding quality care for their children. The advent of the nanny-cam caught many well-paid nannies engaging in neglectful and abusive practices. We can only assume that less money will not buy better care.

From the Inside:

I have, in the past, left my children with relatively inexpensive (and inadequate) care-takers. This still left a dent in my pocket-book and extreme guilt in my conscience. When my daughter was older and better able to express herself, I was horrified to learn that the experience was even more awful than I had suspected. She was a four year old child forced to sit and watch baseball all day, not allowed to walk around, not allowed to play, and fed inadequately.

Currently I feel the crunch of limited openings for children under two. I also face the catch-22 that you can't find subsidies for job-search or self-employment activities, but you can't devote yourself to these activities without at least part time child care.

What's Out There:

State faced with child care crisis, report says who will watch kids as welfare overhaul pushes moms into jobs? -- by Annie Nakao, San Francisco Examiner

Why Good Help Is Hard to Find - - David Frum

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