Millions of Women Cannot Afford Child Care
Millions of women in the United States cannot afford the child care that would make it possible for them to go to work, lift themselves out of poverty and contribute to the growth of our economy. The victims of the child care crisis are mainly working-class women, but we all suffer because of its effect on economic growth. The free market cannot resolve the child care crisis because on the one hand, child care is a business with very low margins of profit, and on the other hand, the providers cannot raise their prices because the people who need the service cannot afford to pay more.[1] A federal program to provide affordable child care would help millions of women and promote the growth of our economy.
Millions of Women and Their Children Are Stuck in Poverty While Businesses Need Workers
Because of the lack of affordable child care, millions of women and their children are stuck in poverty. This problem is especially serious for women of color, many of whom find themselves in child care “deserts” where licensed care is unavailable at any price. However, the problem also affects millions of white, working-class women. Surveys have shown that many women would find jobs or work more hours if the cost of child care did not eat up all or most of their earnings.
Poverty is well-known to cause various social pathologies. Children from poor families often do poorly in school; they often drop out and thus continue their poverty into the next generation. The ill effects of poverty affect people of all races and are especially widespread among families headed by women. Poverty is also expensive for those of us who are not poor. We spend billions every year on programs like Food Stamps and Medicaid that are designed to alleviate the suffering of poor people. We would spend less on such programs if we provided the child care that allowed millions of families to lift themselves out of poverty
The lack of child care also limits the growth of our economy because it limits the amount of labor that is available to businesses. A business can grow only if it can find people to do the necessary work, and we know that millions of women would like to work if working earned them more than the cost of child care. If child care were available at an affordable price, millions of families would be able to pull themselves up out of poverty. They would become more self-reliant; our economy would grow faster; and we would save money that is now spent alleviating the poverty that is caused by the lack of child care.
Child Care as a Kind of Infrastructure
The easiest way to think about this issue is to think of child care as a kind of infrastructure. We build roads and airports, and we support public schools and universities as infrastructure investments. We know that the free market would not provide such facilities even though they make a big contribution to our economy. All of our businesses depend on our transportation infrastructure, and they depend on the availability of an educated work force. Thus, our infrastructure investment benefits all of us. Child care is like that. It would benefit the women who make use of it, and it would also benefit the rest of us through its effect on economic growth.
An Opportunity for the Democratic Party
The need for affordable child care provides an opportunity for the Democratic Party. Working class women are a natural constituency for the party, but it has rarely spoken directly to their needs. If we can persuade them that we are prepared to offer a real solution to one of their most pressing problems, we will surely garner millions of votes. Let’s take advantage of this opportunity! Let’s make affordable child care a key issue in this year’s Democratic campaign!
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