The Impact of Different after-School Childcare Settings on the Labor Conditions of Low-Income Working Mothers: Comparisons between Racial Ethnicity

Background:More than half of children under age 16 live in households in which all parents work. Even though families with school-aged children use a variety of types of formal and informal childcare arrangements, many studies have only focused on formal care settings for children between 0 and 4 years of age.  Numerous studies have also been interested in relationships between maternal employment and childcare settings for children under school-age, but little research has been done to identify the impact of childcare options on low-income, racial ethnic minority working mothers or families. Therefore, the goal of this study is to examine the impact of different after-school childcare arrangements, in relation to racial ethnic differences, on work or training availability and hours worked of low-income working mothers.

Methods:We used the U.S. Department of Education’s National Household Education Survey Programs: After-School Programs and Activities (2005). Out of a total sample of 11,684 children, we selected 717 who used either after-school programs (reference group), relative, self-, parental-care, or some combination of care whose mothers were either White, Hispanic, or African American. The dependent variables are mothers’ hours worked per week and month in the past 12 months, training/school availability, and regular job shift availability. Binary logistic and Ordinary Least Square regression analyses were used.

Results:Compared to Hispanic mothers using relative care, Hispanic mothers using after-school programs (b=-6.40, p=.001), self-care (b=-6.41, p=.001), and parental care (b=-7.77, p=.000) had shorter working hours. In addition, Hispanic mothers using parental care had shorter working months (b=-1.06, p=.039) than those who used relative care.  Compared to White mothers using relative care, White mothers using parental care showed shorter working hours (b=-4.73, p=.014). In addition, compared to White mothers using relative care, White mothers using self-care showed longer working months (b=1.24, p=.060). However, this estimate was only marginally significant. Overall, White and Hispanic mothers using relative care had more positive relationships with their working hours than Hispanic mothers using other types of after-school childcare options.

Conclusions:  The positive association found between relative care and Hispanic mothers’ working hours supports that prompt and imminent assistance from extended family members in extended community networks has proven to be effective.  Even though both relative care and parental care are considered extended family care, findings support that relative care is a more helpful resource for Hispanic mothers than parental care (including spouse care). Furthermore, this study’s finding that low-income mothers (including White mothers) and low-income ethnic-minority mothers (only Hispanic mothers) were more likely to use relative care supports that low-income parents and parents of color decide to choose family-based or relative care over inflexible formal childcare arrangements (e.g., after-school programs).  For implications, first, policy-makers should provide financial assistance to relative/kinship care arrangements considering that these care types positively affect low-income White and Hispanic working mothers’ labor condition (i.e., working hours). Second, for working families who cannot seek relatives for their childcare or who cannot locate after-school programs in their neighborhood, the government should investigate the needs of structured after-school programs in both rural and low-income areas.