Child Care Providers on President’s Jobs Plan: “Our Job Supports Jobs!”

Local family child care providers highlight their hidden role in keeping California working

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 8, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — The following release is being issued by the Child Care Providers:

WHAT: As Californians react to President Obama’s “Jobs” speech, child care providers across the state speak out about being the hidden foundation that allows working Californians–some of them just back to work–to have peace of mind that their children are safe while they are at their jobs.

WHY: The care these providers offer California’s workforce allows families to remain employed or get training for a new profession. Especially for families with night hours or weekend shifts, these providers are a lifeline, offering a service that working parents can’t find anywhere else.

WHO: Child care providers whose home-based centers care for roughly 1/3 of the state’s young children with working parents. These providers will highlight both the support they provide working families as well as their struggles to keep their doors open despite the state’s broken child care system.

“We are like a house–you can’t see the foundation, but the house wouldn’t stand without it,” says Tonia McMillian, a child care provider in Bellflower. “To be able to support more jobs in California, we must stabilize the state’s child care system. Last year, more than 5,000 home-based providers closed their doors, in large part because the child care system–the foundation–needs to be repaired.”

WHERE: Providers and parents are available for interview by telephone

WHEN: Thursday, September 8, 2011
Immediately after the President’s speech

For more information, see recent UC Berkeley report on economic benefits of the child care industry.

Terry Carter–(213) 700-5617

SOURCE Child Care Providers