News

March 3, 2023

New Survey Reveals Impact of Child Care Staffing Shortage

Partners of the Start Strong PA and Pre-K for PA advocacy campaigns recently released new survey results detailing the wage-driven staffing crisis in the early care and education sector, which continues to contract the capacity of child care programs.

About the Survey

The new survey, conducted between January 31 and February 12 details the current child care staffing crisis in more than 1,100 Pennsylvania child care programs across 54 counties and its effects on working families’ ability to access care.

Summary of Survey Results

Staffing Crisis

  • Programs need to fill nearly 4,000 open staffing positions.
  • 85% of child care respondents reported staffing shortages.
  • 50% of child care respondents have closed at least one classroom.

Impact on Working Families

  • Nearly 35,500 children currently sit on child care waiting lists.
  • More than 30,000 additional children could be served at respondents’ sites if they were fully staffed.
  • Over 2,200 children currently sit on Pre-K Counts waiting lists.
  • Over 650 children currently sit on Head Start Supplemental Assistance Program waiting lists.

Implications

The February 2023 survey results depict a deepening crisis in the early care and education sector. In May 2022, Start Strong PA released a similar survey showing that Pennsylvania’s child care centers were experiencing a staffing shortage resulting in nearly 32,500 children sitting on waiting lists. These new survey results show that over the past 10 months, waiting list numbers have continued to increase across Pennsylvania.

Start Strong PA and Pre-K for PA Campaign Recommendations

Child care workers, on average, make less than $12.50 an hour, and 50% of them qualify for government benefits. Because of this, child care providers cannot compete against other industries, which offer higher wages and require less specialized skills, for staff.

Child care advocates are calling on Governor Shapiro and the Pennsylvania General Assembly to increase investment in early care and education programs, using recurring funds as part of the 2023-2024 state budget.

Learn More

The following fact sheets are available with statewide and county results:

Statewide results
Allegheny
Armstrong
Beaver
Butler
Fayette
Greene
Indiana
Lawrence
Washington
Westmoreland

Trying Together is a principal partner of the Start Strong PA and Pre-K for PA campaigns.

To learn more, visit the Trying Together, Start Strong PA, or Pre-K for PA websites.

News

February 14, 2023

NAEYC Report Quantifies Impact of Recent Child Care Challenges

The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) has released a report on the results of their fall survey. Entitled, “Uncertainty Ahead Means Instability Now: Why Families, Children, Educators, Businesses, and States Need Congress to Fund Child Care,” the report quantifies the impact of recent child care challenges.

About the NAEYC Survey and Report

The NAEYC survey was conducted in October 2022 using SurveyMonkey.

The resulting report represents the responses of 12,897 individuals working in all states (including 941 individuals working in Pennsylvania child care programs) and early childhood education settings, including faith-based programs, family child care homes, Head Starts, and child care centers. It is intended to present the experiences of the respondents, as captured in the moment that they took the survey.

Summary of Pennsylvania Survey Data

Data on Stabilization Grants

Over the course of the pandemic, Pennsylvania utilized federal relief funding to stabilize the child care sector. This included one-time bonuses for child care teachers and increased subsidy payments for providers to increase staff salaries. However, this relief funding will soon end. As a result of the end of pandemic relief funding:

  • 62% of Pennsylvania child care center directors reported that they will have to raise tuition
  • 29% of Pennsylvania child care center directors reported they will have to cut staff salaries

Data on Staffing and Supply

  • 57.7% of Pennsylvania child care center directors reported serving fewer children than they would like, primarily due to staffing shortages
    • 65.8% of Pennsylvania child care center directors reported currently experiencing a staffing shortage
  • 33.7% of Pennsylvania early childhood educators (ECE) indicated “yes” or “maybe” to considering leaving their job or closing their family child care home
    • 45.8% of family child care providers indicated “yes” or “maybe” to considering leaving their job
    • 35.4% of ECEs in minority-owned child care businesses indicated “yes” or “maybe” to considering leaving their job
    • 9.9% of ECEs in non-minority-owned child care businesses indicated “yes” or “maybe” to considering leaving their job
    • However, the majority of ECEs indicated competitive wages would convince them to stay at their jobs.

Data on ECE Workforce Well-Being

  • 34.9% of Pennsylvania respondents reported experiencing financial insecurity in the last year, despite 54.7% reporting an increased wage
  • Additionally, 78.6% of Pennsylvania respondents indicated that burnout/exhaustion contributed “greatly” or “to some extent” to problems retaining teachers

NAEYC Recommendations

NAEYC recommends that congress build on the successes of child care funding to prioritize additional, sustainable investments.

These investments ensure programs and educators can meet the needs of families, children, and businesses, and states can continue to build towards an early childhood education system that works.

Learn More

To learn more about the NAEYC survey results, read the full report.