Mothers' Contribution to Family Income Is Essential

Women are the sole or primary earners in two-fifths (40 percent) of households with children under age 18, according to a new study by the Pew Research Center. This group includes 5.1 million married mothers who earn more than their husbands and 8.6 million single mothers. Women out-earned their husbands in nearly one-quarter (23 percent) of married-couple families with children in 2011, an increase from just 4 percent in 1960.

With mothers' widespread participation in the workforce, and the essential contribution they make to their families' income, child care is more important than ever. Parents need reliable, high-quality child care so they can get and keep a job and work productively knowing that their children are in a safe, nurturing environment. 

Yet child care is hard to find and difficult to afford for families across the country. The average cost of full-time child care [PDF] ranges from about $3,900 to nearly $15,000 a year, depending on where a family lives and the type of care. Average monthly child care expenditures increased by 26 percent from 2005 to 2011 among families with employed mothers and children under age six, according to a recent analysis of Census data by the Carsey Institute [PDF]. Child care costs are a particular burden for families struggling financially. Low-income families (incomes below 200 percent of poverty) with young children that paid for child care spent nearly one-quarter (23 percent) of their income on that care. Few of these families are able to receive help with the high cost of care — just one out of six children eligible for child care assistance [PDF] receives it.

The public continues to have conflicted feelings about working mothers. In a Pew Research Center poll conducted in April 2013, two-thirds of adults (67 percent) said the growing number of working women has made it easier for families to earn enough to live comfortably. However, nearly three-quarters of adults (74 percent) said it has made it harder for parents to raise children. High-quality child care that promotes children's learning and growth could help address these concerns about the impact of parents' work on children. 

Despite the public's somewhat mixed feelings, working mothers are a reality today, and that reality has gained increasing acceptance. Only 20 percent of mothers would prefer not to work at all, according to Pew Research Center polling conducted in 2012. Just 18 percent of all adults agree that "women should return to their traditional roles in society." It's time for child care to catch up with this reality, and for families to have access to the high-quality, affordable care they need.