Boom in Childcare Jobs Post Covid: A Detailed Analysis of BLS Report

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, childcare job creation shows a noticeable upward trend each month. With the conclusion of substantial federal investments aimed at stabilizing the childcare sector, employment in this field is now only 3.7% lower than pre-pandemic levels. Since the initiation of ARPA funds in 2021, a remarkable 146,000 childcare jobs have returned, signifying significant progress. Nevertheless, a recent observation of a potential deceleration in the national recovery of childcare jobs indicates the need for continued support and attention to ensure the sector’s sustained growth.

Points Scored

Chart: Center for the Study of Child Care Employment, UC BerkeleySource: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Current Employment Statistics,” Series Code: CES6562440001, available at https://beta.bls.gov/dataViewer/view/timeseries/CES6562440001

What the above Graph Tells Us:

• Childcare jobs per month are on the rise post-COVID.
• The end of federal investment to stabilize childcare is approaching, with employment currently only 3.7% below pre-pandemic levels.
• Since the introduction of ARPA funds in 2021, 146,000 childcare jobs have been restored.
• However, there is a recent slowing down in the national recovery of childcare jobs, highlighting the need for ongoing support and attention to ensure sustained growth in the sector.

-39,400 Childcare jobs lost since Feb 2020

96.3% Percentage of childcare jobs today compared to Feb 2020

Childcare employment decreased in several states and metropolitan regions, but Massachusetts and the Los Angeles metro area experienced an exception, with childcare job numbers increasing by 1.36% and 0.94%, respectively. As the pandemic-era stabilization investments in childcare end, CSCCE will maintain vigilance in tracking employment figures in the coming months. The data presented in this report is sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ “Employment, Hours, and Earnings from the Current Employment Statistics” survey for the year 2023. It’s important to note that the job numbers for the current month are preliminary estimates provided by BLS and may be subject to adjustments in previous months, potentially leading to variations from earlier Jobs Tracker figures. These estimates encompass employees within the “child day care services” industry, encompassing child care, Head Start, preschool, and school-age care programs. However, they do not include self-employed workers, such as home-based childcare providers, whose figures are published separately by CSCCE. Unfortunately, this employment data cannot be further segmented by education, race/ethnicity, role, setting, or funding stream. While state and city-level estimates are available for a few regions in the “child day care services” industry, these are subject to preliminary estimation by BLS, and the release date for this data is typically later in the month compared to national statistics.

City Wise Jobs

Chart: Center for the Study of Child Care Employment, UC BerkeleySource: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Current Employment Statistics,” available at  https://beta.bls.gov/dataViewer/view/4918eefb944741d5aeb3d89dee5e5705

Insights on Data Source

1. Data Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2023). Employment, Hours, and Earnings from the Current Employment Statistics survey.
2. The current month’s jobs numbers are a preliminary estimate by BLS. Our figures include BLS adjustments to previous months and thus may differ from earlier Jobs Tracker Figures. These estimates include employees in the “child day care services” industry, which includes child care, Head Start, preschool and school-age care programs. The estimates include employees only and do not include self-employed workers, such as owners of home-based childcare figures published by CSCCE.
3. This employment data cannot be disaggregated by education, race/ethnicity, role, setting, or funding stream.
4. For the “child day care services” industry, estimates for a few states and cities are available, a selection of which are included here. The availability of state- or city-level estimates varies by industry, and the most recent month’s job numbers are a preliminary estimate by BLS. These data are released by BLS later in the month than national.