Table of Contents

Child Care in
New York State

— 2023 —
New York State Department of Labor
Division of Research & Statistics

Background

For many working parents with young children, choosing a child care arrangement is a difficult decision. While parents prioritize safety and quality, they must also consider cost, hours of operation, distance, and other factors, such as the need for care outside the typical 9-5 workday.

Child care is generally split into four program types:

  • Center-based: highly regulated and located in non-residential buildings with classrooms typically split by age
  • School-based: mainly consists of preschool and after-school programs
  • Home-based: providers care for smaller groups of children in a residential building
  • Private household: provided in the child’s or caregiver’s home by a relative, friend, babysitter, nanny, or au pair

Based on data from the New York State Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS), there were 17,264 licensed and registered child care providers with a maximum capacity of 788,744 children in New York State in 2022.

Center-Based Providers Account for 82% of Child Care Slots

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* Family Day Care Homes provide care to more than 2 non-relative children in a residence with a maximum capacity of 8 children/caregiver, while Group Family Day Care Homes have a maximum capacity of 16 children/2 caregivers.

*School-age children includes: (1) those enrolled in school, including kindergarten or a higher grade; and (2) those at least six years of age.

Source: New York State Office of Children and Family Services

Data from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) provide industry-level quarterly employment, wage, and establishment counts based on Unemployment Insurance (UI) system records from 2000 to 2022. However, the child day care services industry data from the QCEW primarily capture center-based workers, including child care, preschool, and school-age care programs. These estimates exclude self-employed workers, such as the owners of home-based child care businesses.

There were 5,846 private child day care services establishments in New York State in 2022 based on the QCEW data. According to the OCFS, there were 6,922 center-based providers registered in New York State in 2022. The difference is mainly explained by the school-age child care component. A large share of before- and after-school programs operate in establishments whose prime function is something other than child care. For example, many programs are located in community centers which would be classified as Child and Youth Services in the QCEW.

Though incomplete, the data from the QCEW provide some useful information about New York’s child care industry. Child care businesses in the state tend to be small operations. In 2022, half of the businesses had four or fewer employees. Only about one in five had 20 or more workers.

Half of New York's Child Care Establishments Have Fewer Than Five Employees

  • 50% Less Than 5 Employees
  • 14% 5 to 9 Employees
  • 17% 10 to 19 Employees
  • 16% 20 to 49 Employees
  • 3% 50 or More Employees

Source: Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 4Q 2022

New York State’s child day care services industry was hard hit at the onset of the pandemic and heavily impacted by the restrictions put in place to stop the spread of COVID-19. While 65% of state-licensed child care providers stayed open as part of the essential workforce, many were operating at only 30% of their licensed capacity due to staffing shortages and social distancing mandates. In the second quarter of 2020, the private sector child care industry in NYS lost 27,100 workers, or 35%, of total employment compared to the previous year. As of the fourth quarter of 2022, employment remains at 98% of its pre-pandemic level.

Employment in the Private Child Day Care Services Industry Nearly Back to Pre-Pandemic Levels

Quarterly Employment, New York State, Private Child Day Care Services

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Source: NYS Department of Labor, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages

New York State’s private child day care services industry had a total of 5,883 facilities and employed 75,531 workers in the fourth quarter of 2022. Over the long term, the child care industry has seen strong growth. From 2012 to 2022, employment in the industry grew by 14%, while overall employment in the private sector grew by 10% over that decade. However, this coincides with a decline in the number of children living in households with all available parents working. In 2021, there were 844,067 children under the age of six living in a household with all available parents working, down from 867,732 in 2012. The number of school-aged children living in households with all available parents working also fell from 1,917,711 to 1,889,820. [2]

Employment in New York’s Child Day Care Services Industry Grew by Nearly 14% Over the Past Decade

Change in Annual Average Employment, Child Day Care Services, by Labor Market Region, 2012-2022

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Source: Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages

Note: Regions may not add up to statewide total.

Over the past decade, the gain in jobs came from the downstate region, mostly New York City. New York City’s child care landscape differs from other areas of the state. In 2014, the city launched the “Pre-K for All” program which provides free, full-day pre-K to all eligible four-year-olds in New York City. The city has also expanded its 3-K program which offers free, full-day, early childhood education for three-year-olds.

New York City is also the only region in the state that has had a significant increase in the number of children under six since 2012. Employment in the private child day care services industry increased in both the Hudson Valley and Long Island Regions between 2012 and 2022; however, the population of children under six fell by more than 8,300.

Population of Children Under Six Has Fallen Over the Past Decade

Change in the Number of Children Under Age 6, by Labor Market Region, 2012-2021

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Source: Table B09001 Population by Age, ACS 5-Year Estimates.

Child Care Prices

Cost is a significant factor working parents consider when choosing care for their children. The price of child care varies by the child’s age, the care setting, and location. Care is generally more expensive for infants and toddlers than for older preschoolers because more staff is necessary to care for the youngest children. In New York State, by regulation, for children between the ages of six weeks old and 18 months old, there must be one teacher for every four children, with the maximum group size of eight. The maximum group size rises to 24 for four-year-olds with three teaching staff. [3]

Center-based child care is more expensive than home-based child care because owners need to rent space, pay salaries, and buy insurance. Center-based child care for infants is generally the most expensive type of child care. According to analysis from Child Care Aware of America (CCAoA), as of 2022, New York State had the least affordable center-based infant care among all states and the District of Columbia.[4] In 2021, it was the fifth least affordable. [5]

High costs keep child care out of reach for many New York families. At $21,826 annually, center-based infant care is 155% higher than annual in-state tuition in New York’s public four-year universities. It can cost a married couple 18% of their household income and single-parent families an average of 63%.

High Costs Keep Child Care Out of Reach For Many New York Families

2022 Average Annual Price of Full-Time Child Care by Age and Setting, New York State

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* Data for school-age child care are for 2021.

Source: Child Care Aware America’s 2022 Child Care Affordability Analysis

Availability

Families that can afford care often have difficulty finding a licensed child care provider. According to data from the New York State OCFS, the number of licensed child care centers in New York fell from 4,290 in 2019 to 4,177 in 2022, while the number of family child care providers also fell to 10,342 from 11,387 over those three years. New York’s licensed child care facilities only have the capacity to care for about half of the children who potentially need care, leaving many parents relying on relatives, friends, or unlicensed providers to care for their children.[6] According to the Center for American Progress, as of 2021, 64% of New Yorkers also live in a child care desert – communities where there may be three or more children for every available licensed child care slot.[7]

Availability of Child Care Varies Across New York State

Number of Children Under Six Per Child Care Slot

Source: 2021 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates Table B09001. Child Care Capacity by Age Group, NYS Office of Family and Children Services and NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

The availability of child care varies widely among the 62 counties in New York State. The New York City region has a relatively high availability of child care, thanks to the city’s “Pre-K for All” and expanded 3-K programs. Manhattan has the highest availability of child care of all the counties in New York State, with just 2.3 children under the age of six for every child care slot (infant/toddler/preschool). Studies also show that high-income suburban areas, like Nassau County and Westchester County, also have relatively high availability of child care.[8]

Studies have also shown that families in rural areas have the fewest child care slots relative to demand.[9] In the Mohawk Valley, Herkimer County has nearly nine children for every child care slot. Lewis County, Wyoming County, Oswego County, and Jefferson County follow it. These are all relatively rural counties with small populations.

The lack of affordable and reliable child care options force parents to choose between spending a large portion of their budget on child care, using lower-quality or less convenient options, or cutting back their work hours. Many mothers opt to leave the workforce altogether because of child care issues, which can cost them hundreds of thousands of dollars over their careers.

The labor force participation rate (LFPR) measures the number of people who are currently employed or actively looking for work as a percentage of all civilian, noninstitutionalized adults. Typically, the more costly child care is, and the more children there are per available child care slot, the less likely women are to participate in the labor force.

Data from New York State show that the LFPR of women with children under 6 decreases by one percentage point as child care availability (the number of child care slots as a percent of children under the age of 6) decreases by 20 percentage points. Similarly, as the cost of center-based infant care as a percent of median family income increases by one percentage point, the LFPR of women with children under 6 falls by 1.3 percentage points.

Lower Child Care Availability Reduces Labor Force Participation of Mothers

Labor Force Participation Rate of Women with Children Under Six vs Children Under Six per Child Care Slot Available, by NYS County

Source: 2021 ACS 5-Year Estimates, NYS Office of Children and Family Services, Market Rate Survey

The High Cost of Child Care Keeps Mothers out of the Labor Force

Labor Force Participation Rate of Women with Children Under Six vs Cost of Center-Based Infant Care as a Percentage of Median Family Income for a Family of Four, by NYS County

Source: 2021 ACS 5-Year Estimates, NYS Office of Children and Family Services, Market Rate Survey

School-aged children

School-age programs are also an important component of child care. For working parents, the hours before and after school leave care gaps that many families struggle to fill. In New York State, the average price of before and after school care was $11,144 per year in 2021.[10] As of 2022, there were 2,745 school-age programs in New York with 332,663 spaces.[11]

Undervalued and Underpaid

The early care and education (ECE) workforce is engaged in vital and challenging work that is essential to children’s learning and development as well as the full participation of parents in the labor force. Despite the important nature of their work, people who work in the child care industry are among the most underpaid and undervalued in New York State. Twelve percent (12%) of child care workers in the state live in poverty, compared with 5% of workers in other occupations.[12] Many preschool and child care workers cannot afford child care for their own children. According to our analysis of Child Care Aware of America data, child care professionals in New York State would have to spend, on average, 62% of their annual earnings to pay for center-based infant care. And the cost for two children in center-based care is 15% higher than their average annual income.[13] In this analysis, the “ECE workforce,” “child care workforce,” or “child care workers” includes three main occupations: teacher assistants, preschool teachers, and child care workers. Teacher assistants, who account for 25% of jobs in New York State’s child day care services industry, help preschool teachers at child care centers and generally require some additional vocational training or an associate’s degree. Preschool teachers, accounting for 22% of the jobs in New York’s child day care services industry, assess the developmental needs of children and create plans to help them develop both socially and intellectually. Although preschool teachers typically require bachelor’s degrees, occupational wage data show that early educators pay a penalty for working with younger children. The median wage for preschool teachers in New York State is $37,900, less than half the $85,200 that kindergarten teachers earn. Child care workers provide basic care for children when their parents are away. This occupation accounts for 17% of the jobs in New York State’s child day care services industry. Beyond preparing meals and changing diapers, child care workers provide the building blocks of intellectual, emotional, and social development. These jobs usually require a high school diploma and have a median annual wage of just over $32,900 in New York State, 39% below the overall median wage ($54,300).

High Costs Keep Child Care Out of Reach For Many New York Families

Most Workers in the Child Care Industry Earn Less Than the Median Wage in New York State

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Source: Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics

In New York State, 94% of the child care workforce are women, compared to 49% of workers in other occupations. They are also disproportionately workers of color. Child care workers are predominantly U.S.-born, but are more likely to be foreign-born compared to all other occupations. Most child care workers in New York State have at least some college education, but are less likely than workers in other occupations to have a bachelor’s degree or higher.

Child Care Workers Are Disproportionately Women and People of Color (2021)

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Child Care Workers By Race

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Child Care Workers By Gender

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Child Care Workers By Poverty Status*

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*Data for this category is a subset of the total

Child Care Workers By Insurance Coverage Status

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Child Care Workers By Nativity/Citizenship Status

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Child Care Workers By Educational Level*

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*Data for this category is a subset of the total

Note: Child care workers include three occupations (Childcare workers, Teaching Assistants, and Preschool and Kindergarten Teachers) in the Child Day Care Services Industry (NAICS 6244). Wages/Salary income for 2019 are in 2019 dollars and for 2021 are in 2021 dollars.

Source: 2021 1-Year American Community Survey (ACS) Public Use Microdata Survey (PUMS) Estimates

Data have shown that child care providers experience high levels of material hardship, burnout, and emotional distress. One in four report difficulty affording housing[14] while 23% experienced food insecurity.[15] These issues have led to many child care workers leaving the field altogether leading to staffing challenges. Between 2019 and 2021, turnover rates in the child day care services industry in New York State ranged from 11% to 12%, higher than the overall turnover rate of 9% to 10%.[16] More than half of child care providers reported staff shortages in 2022, resulting in a negative impact on providers’ ability to provide high-quality care.[17]

Parents in New York State’s Workforce

Parents of children under the age of 18 make up a large share of New York’s labor force, with fathers accounting for 15% and mothers accounting for 14%. Labor force participation rates are also higher among parents of children under 18 (81%) than among those who are not parents of children under 18 (55%).

Gender norms have been changing over the past several decades. More fathers are taking a more active role in parenting, and the number of stay-at-home dads has been increasing. However, the care for young children still disproportionately falls to the mother, and women continue to bear the burden of the lack of affordable and accessible child care. According to our analysis of Current Population Survey (CPS) data (from the U.S. Census Bureau), among New York parents whose youngest child was under age six, 95% of fathers and 68% of mothers are working. Mothers with older children are more likely to participate in the labor force. Mothers are also the sole breadwinner for 23% of New York households with children.

The labor force participation rate of mothers in New York State has increased from 70% in 2018 to 73% in 2022. Workplace flexibility, including remote work, flexible hours, and other appropriate arrangements, helps mothers balance their careers with child care responsibilities and is critical for the inclusion of women in the workforce. Research has shown that the availability of remote work had a large impact on mothers’ labor force participation during the pandemic.[18] However, far more women compared to men tend to work part-time due to issues with child care. According to CPS data, there were 91,800 people in New York State working part-time in 2022 due to child care-related issues. Within this group, 86% were women.

The Gap Between Labor Force Participation of Mothers and Fathers Widest for Parents of Children Under 6

Labor Force Participation Rates of Parents in New York State

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Source: 2022 Current Population Survey

Child Care and the Gender Wage Gap

“Gender wage gap,” “gender pay gap,” or just “gender gap” are terms used to refer to the fact that men, on average, out-earn women. The gap typically is expressed as the average cents earned by women for each dollar earned by men and is sometimes expressed as a percentage. The Department of Labor issued a report on the gender pay gap in March 2023.[19] The gender pay gap grows over a woman’s career and is widest for women 65 years and older. In New York State, women aged 16-24 earn 99 cents for every dollar that men earn. However, the wage gap grows to 77 cents for every dollar by the time they turn 65. The widening pay gap in part reflects the disproportionate impact of family responsibilities on women’s careers, otherwise known as the “motherhood penalty.” It includes negative impacts on women’s earnings from work interruptions after having a child, as well as career penalties from utilizing flexible work arrangements, and a general bias against caregivers. This bias is also reflected in the low pay of child care workers. The reduction in earnings tends to have a ripple effect on lifetime earnings. Initial declines in work hours reduce earnings which eventually limits retirement income women receive from Social Security and employment-based retirement plans, which are dependent on past earnings. Wage growth can also slow for those who take lower-paying jobs or miss out on promotions due to caregiving responsibilities. According to a 2023 study by the Urban Institute,[20] the average lifetime cost to mothers associated with providing care to children younger than age six is $145,000, and the cost for children ages 6-17 is $107,000. When parents can’t find adequate child care, the reduction in their work productivity not only impacts their wages, but also costs their employers and taxpayers. According to a study from ReadyNation, the infant and toddler child care crisis is costing the nation $122 billion in lost earnings, productivity, and revenue each year. They estimate that families lose $78 billion per year in potential earnings and employers lose $23 billion annually from the resulting productivity losses. The government also loses about $21 billion in lost income and sales tax revenues per year since parents are earning less and spending less in their communities.[21]