1.4. The Impact of Limited Dependent Care Offerings on Working Women, Families, Businesses and the Economy

The limited availability of dependent care offerings in the state and the high costs of such services impacts families, businesses and the economy as a whole. West Virginia families are usually left with the choices of: (1) spending a large chunk of their income on dependent care – between 17 percent[31] and 45 percent[32] for child care, (2) settling for cheaper but potentially lower quality services, (3) making career sacrifices[33] or (4) leaving/not participating in the workforce altogether. Some of the career sacrifices caregivers make include foregoing career opportunities and promotions, reducing their work hours, having to change jobs and accepting lower pay due to dependent care constraints. In 2016, roughly two million parents of children ages 5 and younger had to quit a job, turn down a job offer or make drastic changes to job arrangements due to problems with child care, including 9,425 parents from West Virginia[34]. Each year, working parents lose on average $3,350 in foregone earnings (or $37 billion across 11 million parents), due to decreased productivity and increased time spent looking for work[35].

Businesses, in turn, lose billions of dollars every year (approximately $1,150 per working parent or $13 billion) in productivity and revenue due to child care challenges faced by their labor force[36]. These issues ultimately lead to lower tax revenues (approximately $630 per working parent or $7 billion – primarily in lost federal income taxes but also in sales taxes) and reduced economic activity[37]. Section 1.5 offers an example of what West Virginia’s economy stands to gain if more families have access to child care services.

Disproportionate Impact on Women

Limited access to child care services disproportionately affects women. Women comprise 94 percent of workers involuntarily working part-time due to child care constraints[38]. According to the Congressional Budget Office, 60 percent of women report that they do not participate in the labor force because they are caring for a family member[39]. On the other hand, about 50 percent of men report that an illness or disability prevent them from working.

There are also five times as many single mothers as fathers in the U.S., and at least three-quarters of single mothers work outside of their homes[40]. Single mothers are also nearly twice as likely as single fathers to live in poverty[41]. In West Virginia, 31 percent of working women are economically insecure[42], while 19 percent of women and 24.5 percent of children[43] live in poverty[44]. These statistics can be partially explained by the facts that West Virginia has the lowest labor force participation rate (LFPR) of women – a crucial determinant of poverty[45] – and the third highest gender wage gap in the U.S.