Child care workers rally for benefits, higher wages

Child care providers and their supporters held a rally on Thursday at the Watsonville City Plaza.

It was part of a national day of action with rallies going on in Fresno and San Jose as well.

“It’s something that is very important for us because we need a seat at the table, to have negotiations, to improve the communication,” said Patricia Moran, a child care provider from San Jose.

The group Child Care Providers United helps organize workers to push for agendas, but they do not have collective bargaining rights.

They are encouraging workers to join so that they will have a strong voice in some of their most pressing issues.

“We don’t have health insurance, we don’t have sick days, we don’t have a retirements, we don’t have access to the negotiations. And those are very important for us,” said Moran.

Some workers earn three to six dollars an hour depending on where they live. They have to work 12 to 16 hours a day to make ends meet. They say subsidy programs do not provide enough wages.

Many workers serve low-income families, who sometimes struggle to pay themselves.

“It’s hard for me because I want to charge them less money, but I can’t survive because we don’t make enough money,” said Lilia Salgado, a child care provider from Watsonville.

Organizers say about one million children in the state are on waiting lists for child care. It is a chilling fact that they say shows how broken, underfunded and inaccessible the system is in California.