Child Care Job Recovery Lags; Workforce Remains 11.2 Percent Smaller

BERKELEY, CA — While job numbers across the U.S. economy exceeded forecasts, child care job recovery continues to lag, according to analysis by the UC Berkeley Center for the Study of Child Care Employment (CSCCE). The sector added just 1,300 jobs over the last month, as wages remain low. The median wage of child care workers is just $13.22 an hour

Today’s release is based on the latest U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) jobs report.

Child care job numbers from selected states and metro areas continue to fluctuate each month. Notably, Texas saw an increase of 2,100 after a previous dip, whereas California and Massachusetts experienced small declines in employment.

Check back with us or revisit the site page each month for the updates.

*More details on the data source:

• Data Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2022). Employment, Hours, and Earnings from the Current Employment Statistics survey. 
• Current month’s jobs numbers are a preliminary estimate by BLS.  
• These estimates include employees in the “child day care services” industry, which includes child care, Head Start, preschool and school-age care programs. The estimates include employees only and do not include self-employed workers, such as owners of home-based child care.
• This employment data cannot be disaggregated by education, race/ethnicity, role, setting, or funding stream.
• For the “child day care services” industry, estimates for a small number of states and cities are available, a selection of which are included here. The availability of state- or city-level estimates varies by industry., and the most recent month’s jobs numbers are a preliminary estimate by BLS. These data are released by BLS later in the month than national figures.