WASHINGTON, DC — The American Federation of Teachers today invited child care instructors, directors, parents and others to join its new associate membership program, the Child Care Workforce Alliance (CCWA), to build a broad-based network of early childhood education and child care advocates.

"Early childhood education teachers and child care workers are often the lowest paid, least trained professionals in the education field, and most receive few, if any, benefits," said AFT president Sandra Feldman. "Children suffer, as a result, because these and other poor working conditions for child care workers cause skyrocketing staff turnover and difficulty in recruiting qualified applicants.

"The CCWA's goal is to create a unified, powerful voice for the child care workforce," said Marci Young, deputy director of the Center for the Child Care Workforce, which recently became part of the American Federation of Teachers Educational Foundation. "Without a strong and stable workforce, you cannot provide quality educational opportunities for children," Young said.

Studies have shown that working families often cannot afford high-quality child care that builds pre-literacy and social skills. This puts their children at an immediate disadvantage when they start school and can contribute to the well-documented achievement gap.

"Organizing and mobilizing a diverse group of advocates to speak with one voice is the logical next step toward improving child care and early childhood education," Feldman noted.

The creation of the Child Care Workforce Alliance is the most recent in a series of actions the AFT has taken to play an active role in the development of a stronger, fairer and more systematic method of providing early childhood education and child care in the United States. In 2001, Feldman called for universal, noncompulsory, high-quality preschool; in 2002 she introduced Kindergarten-Plus as a "down payment" on a universal early childhood education system; and on Nov. 1, the Center for the Child Care Workforce came under the AFT umbrella.

Among the benefits CCWA members will receive are:

• monthly email newsletter, Rights, Raises and Respect: News and Issues for the Child Care Workforce;
• child care policy updates, action alerts and publications;
• subscription to American Teacher; and
• access to the AFTPLUS optional benefits and discounts programs for major medical, long-term care and disability insurance plans, which AFT offers.

"CCWA members will be part of the growing movement to guarantee the child care profession the compensation, recognition and respect it deserves," said Feldman.