Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi Joins SEIU Care Worker and Child Care Advocates for the SEIU ‘Walk a Day’ Program, Pledges to Support Child Care Workers on Critical Issues:[...]

"Child care workers like Maria are guiding America's future by providing these children with a healthy and safe environment to grow and learn," Congressman Krishnamoorthi said. "The impact of their work is immeasurable, yet people like Maria are expected to support and care for our kids while also providing for themselves on near-poverty wages. It was humbling to walk in Maria's shoes this morning, and I thank her for her service to our community here in Addison, as well as the thousands of other SEIU workers doing the same across the country. It's time we repay their hard work and dedication by raising child care worker pay and by securing more federal funding for child care."

"Without living wages and benefits, providers like me can't afford to stay in child care and new providers won't join us,"said child care provider Maria Esther Hurtado. "There's a huge demand for child care and too many families are going without. That's bad for providers, bad for families and it's bad for the economy when parents can't work because of lack of child care."

"Whether it's child care, senior care, or caring for those with disabilities, all families regardless of zip code are pressed to find and afford care, while workers are struggling to care for our own families because of low wages and lack of paid leave. Vice President Harris' proposal is a critical step towards building a care system that works for everyone. We will continue to demand that our elected leaders prioritize caregivers and make meaningful investments to solve the care crisis," said Greg Kelley, President of SEIU Healthcare Illinois.

The rising cost of child care has made it unavailable and unaffordable for working-class families, the very people who need the services most. At the same time, child care providers have also been squeezed, with low wages and a lack of benefits creating an unsustainable shortage of child care workers, forcing providers to work harder to fill the gap without a compensation increase. Congressman Krishnamoorthi is a proud co-sponsor of the Child Care for Working Families Act and the Domestic Workers Bill of Rights Act, two pieces of legislation that would ensure child care workers are paid a living wage and have protections such as overtime, access to paid sick leave, and health care coverage.