this post was submitted on 24 Nov 2024
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Summary

Child care costs for many U.S. families during peak inflation in 2022 ranged from $6,552 to $15,600 per child, comparable to rent, according to Labor Department data.

These high costs strained household budgets, disproportionately impacted women’s workforce participation, and fueled economic dissatisfaction among voters.

While Kamala Harris proposed policies to reduce child care costs, Donald Trump capitalized on broader economic grievances to expand his voter base, despite offering few specifics on addressing the issue.

Pandemic-era federal aid helped stabilize costs but left parents bearing much of the financial burden.

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[–] [email protected] 61 points 5 days ago (5 children)

Aren't staff at daycares way under paid? Where is all the money going?

[–] roguetrick 28 points 5 days ago (2 children)

Some of it is skimmed off, sure, but most of it is because it's fucking expensive to employ people to just watch kids.

[–] [email protected] 22 points 5 days ago (3 children)

I just picked a state. Average infant daycare cost is $1172/mo. Maximum of 4 infants per caregiver, so a maximum of $4.688.

Health insurance here averages $400/mo, for an individual (some often paid by the employer).

Assuming they are employed, the employer is paying for federal unemployment insurance, workers compensation insurance, state unemployment insurance. It was really hard to get solid numbers but based on my reading, we can estimate about 2% will go to that.

So we have $4296 left over. Assuming payroll and supplies and everything else costs nothing at all (which is definitely not accurate), and assuming we give the rest straight to the employee... Their gross would be $51,000 roughly.

The average daycare worker in this state makes about $33k/year.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 5 days ago

There's tons and tons of federal and state funds for individual daycares, group centers etc. Some of it specifically to help boost payroll. Still doesn't help because it gets eaten away by the bureaucracy.

[–] million 4 points 5 days ago

The 4 to 1 ratio gets aged out of real quickly. In fact I am not sure we ever got that ratio with our daycare.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 4 days ago

Rent of the daycare facility is likely sky high as well.

Honestly the number of kids per staff member is almost entirely to blame.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 5 days ago (2 children)

I was thinking it would be 1 adult for every 8-10 kids but others are saying it is legally mandated to be 1 adult to 2-5 kids which means you are paying half a persons salary.

[–] AbidanYre 5 points 5 days ago (1 children)

It depends on the age of the kids. Infants have fewer kids per adult than Pre-K does.

[–] bitchkat 4 points 5 days ago

Daycare got cheaper as my son got older. Always loved him moving up to a, new room. Of course, 30 years ago, were talking about $125/week or so when he was an infant.

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[–] Paddzr 14 points 5 days ago (2 children)

The owners.

It's not regulated and generally it's hired as "low skill" (it really fucking isn't) so they're very replaceable.

The easiest money is made on old farts and new farts. Nursing homes care assistants are basically on minimum wage while the owners rake in the money.

It's priced, what are you going to do? Not go to work and stay with your gran or child?

[–] Semi_Hemi_Demigod 19 points 5 days ago

Really awesome that we as a society consider people watching our children at the most important part of their lives “low skill.”

Imagine what our test scores would be like if we considered them as important as hedge fund managers and marketing executives.

[–] Spiralvortexisalie 14 points 5 days ago (3 children)

I am in the northeast and it is heavily regulated down to how many hours staff can be on duty and levels of staffing, the simple fact is that especially for those under twelve (where the rules are generally at least two people at all times for a group of ten, under three is literally 1 person per two children), ensuring that you have 10-12 hours of sufficient coverage (most ppl work 8-9 hours plus travel time to work) from background checked and fingerprinted persons while also feeding the children and keep a commercial building open is expensive.

[–] Paddzr 5 points 5 days ago

I'm glad some places do it right!

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[–] [email protected] 9 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (1 children)

A senior teacher at the KinderCare that my kid to makes $25/hr. Minimum wage here is $20/hr. The cost per month was about $2500 per child.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 5 days ago

My friend shared how he was able to get a deal of $2500 a month for two kids.

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[–] FlyingSquid 41 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Hey that's fine, JD Vance says grandparents can take care of the kids!

Grandparents never have jobs themselves, right?

[–] [email protected] 33 points 6 days ago (2 children)

And some grandparents are child molesters, or are abusive in other ways, who will never be allowed to see their grandchildren.

[–] HeyJoe 29 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Or dead, or too old to handle them, or don't live near you, or just don't want to be bothered. My parents are great, but they did tell me straight up that they wouldn't be a substitute for daycare. They do a lot but just don't want to be responsible like that, and I honestly don't blame them. They watch them whenever we need a babysitter or have to travel for events which is great. My wife's parents are dead.

[–] FlyingSquid 5 points 5 days ago

I love my mom, but I know how she raised me and I know how she was with my daughter when she stayed the night on occasion and I wouldn't have let her watch my daughter long term when she was little. She's not abusive, but she's on the narcissistic side with a temper and she can't handle a small child violating her unwritten rules.

I remember there was a wicker wastebasket in the room she had set up for my daughter and, being a small child, she had picked it apart while left alone up there. The fit my mom threw at me was not fun. At least she didn't throw it at her... but I knew she would eventually.

[–] FlyingSquid 10 points 6 days ago (1 children)

That's a plus to Vance, not a minus. And they'll be allowed to now.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 6 days ago

Every republican knows you can’t rape your own property.

[–] Gammelfisch 10 points 4 days ago

The rest of the 1st World is way ahead of the USA. I like it when the American politicians and business leaders say family values are important. In reality, that is last thing on their fucking minds and the US Labor Laws and paternity leave proves it. If you want to have a family, move to Norway, Sweden, Finland or Denmark.

[–] Coreidan 25 points 5 days ago

And people wonder why I don’t want to have kids.

[–] Ensign_Crab 27 points 6 days ago (15 children)

Sure is great how Manchin killed the childcare provision of BBB.

Centrists made this happen. Now tell us again how we're imagining not being able to afford to live.

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[–] ThePantser 23 points 5 days ago

Yep 10 years ago when my wife was the full time worker and I wanted to work. I would have to have been making $23 per hour to make a profit on working. The cheapest childcare we could find would have me paying childcare costs that exceeded a 40 hour per week check. I would have to pay to have a job. Best I could find at the time was $16.50 so I just elected to save money by not working.

[–] Chessmasterrex 16 points 5 days ago (2 children)

A vasectomy is a hell of a deal.

[–] Fredselfish 9 points 5 days ago

Oklahoma paid for mine for free. Thanks to Plan Parenthood.

[–] Lightsong 8 points 5 days ago

rip my balls off

All I could afford.

[–] [email protected] 21 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

Nobody wants to work anymore! Nobody wants to have kids anymore!

Fuck me, I wonder why? Every inch of all of it sucks and costs too much.

People don't want to work so much because they want quality time with their kids. People don't want to work jobs that don't pay them enough to even have kids, let alone not have enough free time to actually build a life with those kids.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 4 days ago

And yet the childcare WORKERS can barely afford to live.

You know, I'm starting to wonder if maybe families should form some sort of social club and hire childcare workers directly???

[–] [email protected] 10 points 5 days ago

All my coworkers by 1200 to 1600 in usd per per month per kid. This is unsustainable. Unless you have 2 people with no college debt making bank.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Jesus fucking christ! I'm so happy I live in a sane country, we pay $250 for two children, and it's only going down the older they get.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 4 days ago (1 children)

Wait it's supposed to go down? It increases the older they are at mine.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 4 days ago (1 children)

For us it does, since bigger kids are easier to take care of than babies.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 4 days ago (1 children)

Makes sense. The US is backwards lol

[–] [email protected] 1 points 4 days ago

That it is, and it's not looking like it's getting better any time soon 🙃

[–] Evotech 3 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago)

I pay 200 bucks for kindergarten in Norway, and most of it is tax refundable

[–] [email protected] 7 points 6 days ago

Childcare? Y'all don't just leave your kids unsupervised at home?

/s Don't do that, but like thats reality tho. Some people do that.

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