#Hartford, CT. – On Thursday, April 7, Hartford child care workers and parents in the Fight for $15 will gather at Mt. Olive Child Care Center and call on elected leaders to invest in affordable, quality child care and strong workforce. U.S. Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro will then join the workers in a roundtable discussion on Connecticut’s child care system.
A new report by the Economic Policy Institute released this week found that a national investment that caps families’ child care expenditures at 10 percent of their income could help more women join and stay in the workforce, boosting national GDP by about $210 billion and putting $3B into Connecticut’s economy
. This is a state where barely one-third of parents can afford quality childcare. Making childcare affordable would also save the average Connecticut family $5,182 freeing up 7.1% of their annual income.
Fixing our broken child care system and paying child care providers at least $15/hr would directly raise wages for 60% of the workforce. Child care providers are currently among the lowest paid workers in the country, with a median hourly wage 39.3% lower than the median hourly wage of workers in other occupations.
Furthermore, we are facing major budget cuts in Connecticut, cuts to services that will affect many childcare workers and families. In addition to getting federal funding for our unfair childcare system, Connecticut legislators are pushing for a remedy to the annual budget crisis with SB391, which would implement the Low Wage Employer Fee. The Legislature’s Office of Fiscal Analysis estimates that in just the first two years the bill would generate nearly $450 million to help offset devastating cuts to critical services such as childcare and healthcare by holding wealthy corporations accountable. Not only would this help relieve the burden on taxpayers, it would create additional revenue; thus, eliminating the perpetual cycle of budget cuts that affects our most vulnerable, hardworking families.
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