[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 8]
[House]
[Pages 10700-10701]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1445
  SUPPORTING THE GOALS AND IDEALS OF A NATIONAL EARLY EDUCATOR WORTHY 
                                WAGE DAY

  Mrs. McCARTHY of New York. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules 
and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 99) supporting the 
goals and ideals of a National Early Educator Worthy Wage Day.
  The Clerk read the title of the concurrent resolution.
  The text of the concurrent resolution is as follows:

                            H. Con. Res. 99

       Whereas approximately 60 percent of the Nation's children 
     under 6 are in nonparental care during part or all of the day 
     while their parents work;
       Whereas the early childhood industry employs more than 
     2,300,000 workers;
       Whereas the average salary of early care and education 
     workers is $18,917 per year, and only \1/3\ have health 
     insurance and even fewer have a pension plan;
       Whereas the quality of early care and education programs is 
     directly linked to the quality of early childhood educators;
       Whereas the turnover rate of early childhood program staff 
     is roughly 30 percent per year, and low wages and lack of 
     benefits, among other factors, make it difficult to retain 
     high quality educators who have the consistent, caring 
     relationships with young children that are important to 
     children's development;
       Whereas the compensation of early childhood program staff 
     should be commensurate with the importance of the job of 
     helping the young children of the Nation develop their 
     social, emotional, physical, and cognitive skills, and to 
     help them be ready for school;
       Whereas providing adequate compensation to early childhood 
     program staff should be a priority, and resources may be 
     allocated to improve the compensation of early childhood 
     educators to ensure that quality care and education are 
     accessible for all families;
       Whereas additional training and education for the early 
     childhood workforce is critical to ensuring high-quality 
     early learning environments;
       Whereas early childhood educators should receive 
     compensation commensurate with such training and experience; 
     and
       Whereas the Center for the Child Care Workforce, a project 
     of the American Federation of Teachers Educational 
     Foundation, with support by the National Association for the 
     Education of Young Children and other early childhood 
     organizations, recognizes May 1 as National Early Educator 
     Worthy Wage Day: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
     concurring), That the Congress supports the goals and ideals 
     of National Early Educator Worthy Wage Day, and urges public 
     officials and the general public to honor early childhood 
     care and education staff and programs in their communities 
     and to work together to resolve the early childhood education 
     staff compensation crisis.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
New York (Mrs. McCarthy) and the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Petri) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from New York.


                             General Leave

  Mrs. McCARTHY of New York. Madam Speaker, I request 5 legislative 
days during which Members may revise and extend their remarks and 
insert extraneous material on H. Con. Res. 99 into the Record.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from New York?
  There was no objection.
  Mrs. McCARTHY of New York. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as 
I may consume.
  Madam Speaker, I rise today to support House Concurrent Resolution 
99, which recognizes May 1 as National Early Educator Worthy Wage Day 
and urges public officials and the general public to honor early 
childhood care staff and programs in their communities.
  Early childhood educators are among the lowest paid professions in 
education. More and more parents are tapping into early childhood 
education programs to meet their daycare needs and find the best 
opportunities to help their children get ready for their academic 
careers.
  We place a lot of trust in early childhood educators to take care of 
the most vulnerable among us and charge them with great 
responsibilities to care for and to educate our children. Early 
childhood educators are highly skilled workers who are, unfortunately, 
rarely compensated at levels that are consistent with their skill and 
work ethic.
  This resolution asks Congress to honor early childhood educators and 
programs in their communities and to work to resolve the early 
childhood education staff compensation crisis. Adequate compensation to 
early childhood workers should be a priority and they should receive 
compensation consummate with such training and experience.
  Every day, approximately 60 percent of children under the age of six 
are cared for outside the home so that their parents can work. 
President Obama has spoken extensively about the need to further expand 
early education and childcare programs, including his proposal to 
include an early learning challenge grant initiative to promote quality 
care.
  The committed individuals who nurture and teach these young children 
are undervalued despite the importance of their work. Children begin to 
learn at birth, and the quality of care they receive will affect their 
language, development, math skills, behavior and general readiness for 
school.
  The grossly inadequate level of wages for childcare staff, roughly 
$18,917 a year, has made it hard to attract and retain high quality 
early childhood caretakers and educators. The turnover rate for 
childcare providers is 30 percent a year. This high turnover rate 
interrupts consistent and stable relationships that children need to 
have with their caregivers.
  I join in recognizing the importance of the work early childhood 
professionals do and the need to increase their compensation 
accordingly. The Nation's childcare work force, and the families who 
depend on them, deserve our support.
  Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. PETRI. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Madam Speaker, I rise in support of House Concurrent Resolution 99, 
supporting the goals and ideals of a National Early Educator Worthy 
Wage Day.
  Over 11 million children under age 5 spend an average of 36 hours a 
week in nonparental care settings. Over 40 percent of children are in 
some form of nonparental care by the age of 1, and approximately 60 
percent of the Nation's children under the age of 6 are in nonparental 
care during part or all the day while their parents work.
  Parents place children in a variety of care settings, including 
informal, center-based and school-based environments. The majority of 
children remain in traditional childcare settings funded by a variety 
of sources, but a growing number are participating in private and 
State-funded prekindergarten programs. To date, 39 States and the 
District of Columbia have designed, implemented and funded their own 
prekindergarten programs on a large scale, compared to only seven 
States in 1980.
  I support programs to promote early childhood education and efforts 
to ensure that our children are better prepared to enter kindergarten. 
The quality of early childhood education can be linked to the quality 
of our early childhood educators. Allowing for additional training and 
education for the early childhood workforce is important to ensure 
high-quality early learning environments.
  Today, I rise with my colleagues to urge public officials and the 
general public to honor early childhood care and education staff and 
programs in their communities on May 1. I stand in support of this 
resolution, and ask my colleagues' support.

[[Page 10701]]

  I have no requests for time and yield back the balance of my time.
  Mrs. McCARTHY of New York. Madam Speaker, I ask all of my colleagues 
to support H. Con. Res. 99. May I say that working with early educator 
teachers, they are terrific, and if we are going to have a strong 
Nation for the future, we must give them the recognition they deserve.
  Madam Speaker, I ask that all my colleagues support H. Con. Res. 99.
  Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. McCarthy) that the House suspend the 
rules and agree to the concurrent resolution, H. Con. Res. 99.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the concurrent resolution was agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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