Employment Options in the Child Day Care Industry

A major concern for parents these days is toconsidered among the best in the economy. A
obtain affordable, good quality day care serviceslarge number-about 428,500 of all workers in the
for their children especially those under the age ofindustry- are self-employed or unpaid family
five. In recent years when the ratio of bothworkers. This difference reflects the ease of
parents working is on a continuous boom, theentering the child day care business.
need for child day care centers has seen a boom.Usually, the median age of child day care
This has developed child day care service into anproviders is about 38, compared with about 45
industry all by itself.for all workers. About 19 percent of all care
With educated parents so concerned about theproviders are 24 years or younger as opposed to
good education and care of their children, thisabout 13 percent for all industries. The age
industry is on a constant look-out for qualified andrequirements also vary among different regions
trained staff. The industry consists of two mainand companies. There are some establishments
divisions-family care system whose workers arethat even take teachers assistants of 14 to 16.
mostly self-employed and many of whom do notThus, child day care industry is a good
even take a fee because of being related to theemployment option for people on the hunt of a
child's parents, and private child day care centers.part time job. It gives the opportunity of pursuing
The latter are establishments that provide paidyour education simultaneously as most companies
care for infants, toddlers, preschool children, andoffer a maximum of 12 hours working job.
older children in before- and after-schoolAnother plus point of jobs in this field is that
programs. Although the family care services doemployment chances do not become stagnant.
not have a fixed criterion for the caregivers, theAs people find better jobs, they leave this
private part of this industry wants employeesindustry, making room for newcomers.
with a good education as well as prior experienceA survey states that wage and salary jobs in the
with child development work.child day care services industry are projected to
According to a survey report, in America alone,grow about 15 percent over the 2008-18 periods,
child day care services provided about 859,200compared with the 11 percent employment
wage and salary jobs in 2008. There were angrowth projected for all industries combined. It is
additional 428,500 self-employed and unpaid familytherefore easily predictable that center-based day
workers in the industry, most of whom werecare would continue to expand its share of the
family child care providers, and some wereindustry because an increasing number of parents
self-employed managers of child care centers.prefer its more formal setting and believe that it
Jobs in child day care industry are found acrossprovides a better base for children before they
the world, depending upon the distribution of thebegin proper schooling. Those who wish to enter
population. However, day care centers are lessfamily child care industry should not be
common in rural areas, where there are fewerdisappointed as these providers will continue to
children to support a separate facility. Anotherremain an important source of care for many
research shows that in USA alone, almost 86young children because some parents prefer the
percent of all wage and salary jobs in 2008 weremore personal attention that such a setting can
located in establishments with fewer than 50provide. So, overall it is a forthcoming
employees.employment industry and will develop further in
Self-employment opportunities in this industry arethe upcoming days.