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
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- 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
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
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
Undervalued and Underpaid
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
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