About the Index

The biennial Early Childhood Workforce Index represents the first effort to establish a baseline description of early childhood employment conditions and policies on a state-by-state basis in order to improve early childhood jobs.

The Index provides a current appraisal of workforce conditions and policies across all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Three topical sections form the bulk of the cross-state analysis: earnings and economic security; early childhood workforce policies; and family and income support policies across occupations. In the section on earnings and economic security, we provide data on early care and education (ECE) workforce pay, noting changes over time. For the remaining two sections, we have identified measurable indicators of state policy for each topic, grouped by categories within each section. These indicators represent opportunities for state policies that have the potential to enhance the lives of the many children and adults affected by ECE employment conditions.

Based on the indicators, we assign states to one of three groups for each category, as follows:

Red represents stalled:
the state has made limited or no progress;

Yellow represents edging forward:
the state has made partial progress;

Green represents making headway:
the state is taking action and advancing promising policies.

About the Index

The biennial Early Childhood Workforce Index represents the first effort to establish a baseline description of early childhood employment conditions and policies on a state-by-state basis in order to improve early childhood jobs.

The Index provides a current appraisal of workforce conditions and policies across all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Three topical sections form the bulk of the cross-state analysis: earnings and economic security; early childhood workforce policies; and family and income support policies across occupations. In the section on earnings and economic security, we provide data on early care and education (ECE) workforce pay, noting changes over time. For the remaining two sections, we have identified measurable indicators of state policy for each topic, grouped by categories within each section. These indicators represent opportunities for state policies that have the potential to enhance the lives of the many children and adults affected by ECE employment conditions.

Based on the indicators, we assign states to one of three groups for each category, as follows:

Red represents stalled:
the state has made limited or no progress;

Yellow represents edging forward:
the state has made partial progress;

Green represents making headway:
the state is taking action and advancing promising policies.

Early Educator Pay -

Percent changes in median wages 2017-2019
  • Not Available
  • Increase of 10% or more
  • Increase of less than 10%
  • No change
  • Decrease of less than 10%
  • Decrease of 10% or more

Early Childhood Workforce Policies -

  • Not Applicable or Not Available
  • Stalled
  • Edging Forward
  • Making Headway

Family & Income Support Policies -

  • Not Applicable or Not Available
  • Stalled
  • Edging Forward
  • Making Headway

-

  • 2017 Median Hourly Wage
  • 2019 Median Hourly Wage
  • Percent Change
  • Minimum Qualifications:
    Pre-K
    Lead - BA: Assistant - CDA:
  • Minimum Qualifications:
    Center-Based
    Director - BA: Lead - BA: Assistant - CDA:
  • Minimum Qualifications:
    Home-Based
    Lead - BA: Assistant - CDA:
  • Scholarships to Support Educational Pathways
  • Collects Data on Scholarship Recipients?
  • Paid Time for Professional Development?
    Centers: Homes:
  • Paid Planning and/or Preparation Time?
    Centers: Homes:
  • Salary Schedule / Benefits?
    Centers: Homes:
  • Salary Parity:
  • Compensation Requirements:
  • Compensation Guidelines or Plans:
  • Compensation Earmarked in Funding
  • Stipend / Tax Credit
  • Bonus
  • Inclusive Across Settings
  • Collects Compensation Data
    Wages: Benefits:
    Wages: Benefits:
  • Collect Race / Ethnicity Data?
  • Reports Aggregate Data Publicy Online?
  • State Reported Extra CCDF Spending?
  • Ratio of Pre-K to K-12 Spending over 50%?
  • EITC State Has Refundable Credit:
  • State Minimum Wage Higher Than Federal and Indexed for Inflation?
  • Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit State Has Refundable Credit?
  • State-Wide Mandated Paid Sick Leave?
  • State-Wide Mandated Paid Family Leave Program?
  • Expanded Medicaid?