Early Childhood Educators are "Hanging by a Thread!"

Take action now!  On Worthy Wage Day- May 1 - AFT First Class Teachers will deliver letters to members of Congress with the message - "Early Childhood Educators are Hanging by a Thread."

Over 2,000 early childhood educators and supporters have added their name to the AFT First Class Teachers Everyday Heroes Quilt to show strength, solidarity and support for better wages, benefits and professional development opportunities for early childhood educators.  It's time to take a step forward by sending a letter to Congress requesting their support on Worthy Wage Day and sending the message, "Early Childhood Educators are Hanging by a Thread - They Deserve a Worthy Wage."

Fill out the form and send a letter to your members of Congress. Then pass this message on to your friends, colleagues and others who are willing to fight for worthy wages for early childhood educators.  Let them know that early childhood educators are "Hanging by a Thread."

Dear [ Decision Maker ] ,

Your colleagues in Congress will be introducing a resolution in support of National Child Care Worthy Wage Day and hope you will consider becoming an original cosponsor of this legislation.

On May 1st, each year, child care providers and other early childhood professionals nationwide conduct public awareness and education efforts highlighting the importance of good early childhood education for our nation's young children. This resolution is an effort to support these initiatives and to help develop greater public awareness in this area.

This year, early childhood educators are organizing around the theme, "We're Hanging by a Thread." The committed individuals who nurture and teach the 63% of America's children who are cared for outside of their home everyday, continue to be undervalued despite the importance of their work.

We know that children begin to learn at birth, and that the quality of care they receive will affect their language development, math skills, behavior, and general readiness for school. However, the grossly inadequate level of wages for child care staff - roughly $18,180 a year - has led to difficulties in attracting and retaining high quality early childhood care takers and educators.

In addition to low wages, approximately one third of child care workers have health insurance and even fewer have pension benefits. As a result, the turnover of childcare providers is 30 percent a year; this high turnover rate interrupts consistent and stable relationships that children need to have with their caregivers.

We hope you will join your colleagues in recognizing the importance of the work of the early childhood education workforce and the need to increase their compensation accordingly. The nation's child care workforce, and the families who depend on them, deserve your support.

If you would like to cosponsor the resolution, or have any questions, please email or call Rep. Carolyn McCarthy's office.

Sincerely,

Campaign Launched:
April 10, 2007