Cosmo, age 5, attended an event to kick off the New Yorkers United for Child Care campaign with his family. Photo by Amy Wolf
Amid rising rent, food and transportation costs, and other expenses, many new parents face the question of whether or not they can afford child care in New York City.
When the answer is “no,” in most cases, women make the sacrifice. Here in New York, women who earn an annual income of $57,000 and leave the workforce for just three years stand to lose nearly half a million dollars’ worth of wages in their lifetimes.
For a family without access to affordable child care, this can lead to a difficult decision—whether to stay in the city and spend at least $20,000 per year on child care, or leave. And this begs the question: can New York afford to continue to drive out young families seeking a lower cost of living?
Universal child care in New York City currently takes the form of 3-K and Pre-K for All programs that offer free, high-quality child care for all three- and four-year-olds. By providing early childhood classrooms, these programs help women return to the workforce, increase family savings, and keep many children safer, healthier, and better prepared to learn.
However, the city paused the roll-out of universal 3-K last year, which, combined with its projected hundreds of millions of dollars in cuts to the program, leaves many families and would-be parents rethinking future plans.
“Families are paying way more than they can afford, providers have razor-thin profit margins, and employees make extremely low wages,” said Leigh Ross, The Trust’s program officer for girls and young women, early childhood education, and arts education. “It’s an example of market failure, and it is a big driver of both the gender-based wage gap and the city’s growing affordability crisis.”
The Trust helped New Yorkers United for Child Care, a new organization, galvanize local families to advocate for free, high-quality, full-day, and year-round child care for all children under age five.
“The time has always been right for child care in New York, but now pre-K and 3-K are at risk of being gutted by government budget cuts—just when we should be expanding them,” said Rebecca Bailin, the organization’s executive director. “This is an existential moment for our city and state and New Yorkers are ready to fight to preserve what we have—and expand it.”
In 2017, the Schuyler Center for Analysis and Advocacy launched the Empire State Campaign for Child Care, composed of more than 100 member-organizations. Backed by funding from The Trust, the Campaign pressed the state to streamline and expand eligibility for the child-care voucher application process. Now it is pushing for the creation of a fully universal child care system statewide.
“New York has a unique opportunity to lead the way in creating a robust, high-quality universal child care system that meets the needs of all families,” said Ross. “We’ve already made a strong start with universal prekindergarten, but we can do more—and if we do, it could have profound implications, not only for local families, but for the city’s economy as a whole. And philanthropy can help by supporting innovative research, advocating for policy changes, and investing in grassroots organizing,” she said.
Recently, local advocates, including grantees United Neighborhood Houses and the Day Care Council, convinced the city to add $15 million to the budget to convert nearly 1,900 school-day child care seats to much-needed extended-day seats. New York State’s 2024 budget invests $500 million to create a state Workforce Retention Grant Program to support New York’s child care workforce. In addition, the budget expands eligibility for child-care vouchers to families making 85% of the state median income.
By lending their voices to campaigns like the one led by New Yorkers United for Child Care, local families can take this advocacy to the next level. In its efforts to mobilize the city’s parents and would-be parents, the organization is petitioning for signatures, organizing rallies and strategy meetings, and meeting with elected officials to hold leaders politically accountable.
“We need donors’ support. We need as much as you can give, because this is how we’re going to win—through community organizing. Ultimately, child care for all is a common good and is also good for our city,” said Bailin.
Consider supporting universal childcare for New York’s families by making a donation to one of the featured organizations, or contacting our philanthropic advisors at giving@nyct-cfi.org.
Peter Panapento
peter@turn-two.co
(202) 531-3886
Courtney Biggs
cbi@nyct-cfi.org
(212) 889-3963
Peter Panapento
peter@turn-two.co
(202) 531-3886
Courtney Biggs
cbi@nyct-cfi.org
(212) 889-3963