Senator Brad Pfaff visits La Crosse for “A Day Without Childcare”
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
LA CROSSE, Wis. (WLAX/WEUX) – State Lawmakers and advocates in the Coulee Region are raising awareness about the challenges childcare providers are facing. First News at Nine’s Dashal Mentzel hears from them about what can be done to support the childcare industry in Wisconsin.
Monday (5/13/24) is “A Day Without Childcare”, a day that advocates say is dedicated to demanding equitable, affordable, and accessible childcare for all families, as well as better compensation for childcare providers. “Childcare is so extremely important to the working families in this area and in this state. It is the oxygen to our economy. It makes our economy work. Most importantly, it’s so very important when it comes to childhood development.”
State Senator Brad Pfaff visited the Parenting Place’s Childcare Empowerment Conference to discuss problems affecting childcare providers and how to fix them. One of the issues Pfaff mentioned is the low wages that childcare providers are receiving, “We need to renew funding for programs like Childcare Counts. At the same time, we need to support businesses who are working to expand their childcare options.”
Childcare Development Coordinator at the Parenting Place, Michelle Sampson, says there are many reasons why childcare providers need to be focused on during these times, adding it’s important for the public to be aware of issues in the childcare industry because of the potential ripple effects they can cause, “We know that childcare, like many industries, has extreme levels of burnout. The challenge when childcare has extreme levels of burnout is that every other industry is going to feel that burnout. because they also cannot recruit and retain their own employees.”
Sampson adds that there were 136 open childcare slots in La Crosse this past January. In La Crosse, Dashal Mentzel First News at Nine.
Senator Pfaff says funding needs to be focused on childcare because on average, one year of childcare costs as much as tuition at the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX2548 & WIProud.
