Overview:

The lack of affordable and accessible child care in Washington is causing job insecurity, fear, and instability for many residents. The district has the highest child care costs in the country, with average costs taking up over 77% of a minimum-wage employee’s income. Child care providers are also struggling to operate their businesses in a struggling economy, with compounded difficulties. Without reliable child care, employees have to call out of work, show up late, or leave early, causing small businesses to suffer. The lack of access to child care is causing a ripple effect throughout the community, damaging other small businesses and employees.

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Washington is in a crisis. We are facing instability and uncertainty. Many of us feel job insecurity looming and even fear going out into militarized neighborhoods. In the midst of these challenges, communities are facing their own herculean task: finding affordable, accessible, and quality child care. When we cannot find this infrastructure, everything else fractures.

The district has the highest child care costs in the entire country. Average child care costs alone would take over 77% of a minimum-wage employee’s income in D.C. — andmore than 73% of a child care provider’s typical income. This says nothing of rent, medical care, and food. In times of stress, the dollar bill is top of mind, and the state of child care threatens that. 

Facing Compounding Difficulties

We often think of child care as its own entity; if we do not have children receiving care, it is out of mind. What people forget is that child care centers are also small businesses. Providers are facing compounded difficulties; they have the challenge of operating a business in a struggling economy and the challenge of working in a field that is underpaid and undervalued.

When we are focused on protecting our dollar, child care must be a part of our equation. Not only are providers’ well-being affected by their business, but the local economy is dependent on their operations. As a child care organizer, I have started going into other small businesses to ask about the impact of child care on their work. These businesses suffer when their employees don’t have access to child care. 

Without reliable child care, employees consistently have to call out of work, show up late or leave early. When a child care center doesn’t have enough educators in the classroom, or is forced to open late or close early, parents have to choose between working for a full paycheck or having a safe place to look after their children. It is a choice with no winning result. 

A Disappearing Safety Net

In the past, grandparents and neighbors often filled in. Today, that safety net is gone, not because families don’t value it but because people can’t afford to step away from work. Many grandparents are still working simply to cover health care and basic necessities. About 70% of U.S. workers have considered delaying retirement due to financial fears. 

These direct impacts have far-spreading ripple effects. When families don’t have reliable access to child care, they aren’t able to work regular hours. Parents cut down on their nonessential spending and inject less into the local economy. Small businesses face understaffing and may slow or have to cut their own hours. Businesses lose an estimated $4.4 billion every year because of this. 

Small business owners may have to sacrifice offering items such as health care — which is already hard enough to access, and which many child care businesses struggle to offer — for their employees. As we face further threats to Medicaid, a lack of access to health care will hurt employees and force more difficult decisions for parents. 

All of these effects don’t stop at child care providers or even parents. They damage other small businesses, other employees and any community member who visits these businesses or cares about a thriving local economy. How will the district, and the small businesses that give it life, survive if we don’t give proper attention to child care centers as the cornerstones of our economy that they are?

What We Must Do

Our response must be two-pronged: We must treat child care centers as small businesses, and we must rebuild the village that allows families to raise their children. Child care deserves respect, support, and resources from our elected officials and our communities so that we may pay our providers more fairly, maintain accessible care for all families and protect our economy. However, we also have to develop an infrastructure and a system that will supplement policy and the care economy. 

 Mayor Bowser wants credit for supporting early educators, but families are living with the fallout of her choices. Behind the press releases and talking points is a child care system she continues to underfund, destabilizing both providers and parents.

When we don’t have the resources to support reliable child care, we are letting down our children, our families, and our entire communities. We cannot change all of these conditions ourselves, but we can advocate and build together to strengthen our village. We can offer support and care as we are able. We can contact our local leaders to show them that we prioritize our children and our local businesses.

People cannot work and businesses cannot run without a fully funded and accessible child care program. We can and will make this known until we have the support and the infrastructure to protect our economy, our children and our village. 

This story was originally published on Word In Black on January 30th, 2026

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