Article Link: http://www.exchangepress.com/article/thirty-sixth-annual-status-report-on-for-profit-child-care/5026940/
*The full report can be found in the pdf version of this article.
Over the last year, child care and early education businesses have adapted, continually re-inventing themselves in light of the ongoing healthcare crisis, recovering enrollments, staffing challenges, and rising costs. Early childhood educators have led the way by serving essential workers and by creating new innovations such as virtual classroom engagement tools and enhanced sanitation protocols, all while navigating the politics of school closings and vaccination protocols. While demand for enrollment is high, limitations are created by hiring issues, and further stressed by children’s behavioral challenges and developmental delays.
Running on a parallel track to these challenges, child care leaders shared optimism for the future of the industry and promising plans for further growth.
Labor shortages continue to be the number one reported challenge in the industry. Despite utilizing a variety of hiring and retention strategies, such as increased wages, sign-on bonuses, flexible schedules, deep discounts on employee child care and high-quality free training, the desired pool of candidates remains scarce. Employers have struggled with hiring in an environment where they are competing with non-industry employers who can offer more money, benefits and work from home or hybrid work opportunities. ...