While Moms Work, Dads or Other Relatives Care for 4 in 10 Preschoolers, Census Bureau Reports
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UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
NEWS
Economic & Statistics Administration
_________________________________________________________________
EMBARGOED UNTIL: 10 A.M. EST, JANUARY 14, 1998 (WEDNESDAY)
Public Information Office CB98-08
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e-mail: p...@census.gov
Lynne M. Casper
301-457-2416
While Moms Work, Dads or Other Relatives Care for
4 in 10 Preschoolers, Census Bureau Reports
Families with working mothers most often rely on fathers, grandparents
or other relatives for primary care of children under age 5 during working
hours, according to findings in a report released today by the Commerce
Department's Census Bureau.
The Internet address for this information is [1]
http://www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/childcare.html.
About 4.5 million (43 percent) of America's 10.3 million preschool
children received primary care from relatives other than their mothers in
the fall of 1994. Fathers cared for 18 percent; grandparents, 16 percent;
and other relatives such as siblings, aunts or uncles, 9 percent. In
addition, some children (6 percent) received care from their mothers at
their workplaces or while they were working in the home.
In contrast, 29 percent of preschoolers went to an organized facility
such as a day care center (21 percent) or nursery school (8 percent).
"When families are poor or receive government assistance or the mother
works part time or on a nonday shift, they rely even more on relatives for
child care and less on organized facilities," said Lynne Casper, the
report's author. "In these cases, over half of the children are cared for
by relatives other than their mothers."
The report, entitled "Who's Minding Our Preschoolers? Fall 1994"
(Update), P70-62, made these other points:
- Grandparents and other nonparental relatives provided about 35
percent of the primary care for African American preschool
children or Hispanic children, who may be of any race, compared
with only 21 percent for White children.
- About 21 percent of White or Hispanic preschoolers received care
from a nonrelative, either in the child's home or in the
provider's home. Only 15 percent of African American preschoolers
received care from nonrelatives.
- Hispanic preschoolers (19 percent) were far less likely than
either African American children or White children (about 30
percent each) to receive care in organized facilities, such as
nursery schools or day care facilities.
- Ten percent of preschoolers in poor families received primary
care from their mothers who were working for pay in the home or
away from home.
- A third of children whose mothers worked full time were in day
care, nursery school or preschool; when the mother worked part
time the likelihood of such care dropped to 22 percent.
- About 35.5 percent of children whose mothers worked day shifts were
in center-based care; the likelihood of day care dropped to 21
percent when the mother worked a nonday 1shift.
The data are from the fall 1994 Survey of Income and Program
Participation. As in all surveys, the data are subject to sampling
variability and other sources of error.
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more than 100 surveys annually and 20 censuses a decade, evolving from the
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References
1. http://www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/childcare.html