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Child Care Choices for Working Families (PDF)
By California Child Care Resource and Referral Network , Ed.
November 2002

Summary: This summary presents findings from a survey that examined the child care choices of 305 Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees Local 2 union members working in San Francisco’s hotel industry. The parents participate in a labor/management-negotiated benefit plan that provides subsidies to offset child care and elder care costs. The majority of parents were Chinese (49 percent) and Hispanic (22 percent). It is estimated that 50 percent of these working parents qualify for, but do not receive, public child care assistance. Data illustrate the challenges parents face when balancing work and child care, and identify many of the barriers they encounter. This plan provides critical support to a group of families struggling to work in low-wage jobs as well as balance their immediate family responsibilities. Parents were generally pleased with their current care arrangements and these settings seemed to be quite stable. Some parents using informal care specifically stated they would like to see more of an educational component for children. Key recommendations that emerged from the study include: (1) provide additional financial assistance for formal care, (2) offer training and resources for informal care providers, (4) identify activities and programs for school-age children, (5) address child care options that accommodate parents’ schedules, (6) explore ways to stabilize employee work schedules, (7) advocate for low-income families at the State and Federal levels, and (8) advocate for the replication of this plan in other workplaces.

Index Terms: Child Care, Child Care Arrangements, Choosing Child Care, Working Mothers, Working Parents, Child Care Costs, Demographics, Economic Factors, Family Work Relationship, Nontraditional Hours, Surveys, California

Sponsoring Institution (or Funding Source): The David and Lucile Packard Foundation

Publication Type: Reports (Descriptive)

Pages: 6 pages
Language: English
URL: http://www.rrnetwork.org/publications/2002/2002-chcare-choices-local2-execsummary.pdf

Availability
California Child Care Resource and Referral Network
111 New Montgomery Street, 7th Floor
San Francisco, California 94105
415-882-0234
FAX: 415-882-6233
info@rrnetwork.org
http://www.rrnetwork.org/welcome/index.html

 
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