Many parents continue to struggle getting back to work due to lack of reliable childcare

SALINAS, Calif. (KION) A single comment on Facebook, left on Monterey County Board of Supervisors, Wendy Root Askew page, is sparking conversation. A county resident asked, “When will Monterey County go back to in-office hours?” In short, Askew’s response, “Monterey County still has about a quarter of our workforce working remotely, with a slow transition back to the office.” The reason, the lack of reliable child care something many Central Coast working families face.

“Our employees are saying that, we are having a really hard time hiring people to come back to work. But, if you are a parent and you don’t have reliable childcare, it’s really hard for you to commit going back to an in-person work environment when you don’t have anyone to watch your children,” said Askew.

The county says they've jumped into action to help. A 1.5 million dollar budget is in place to get childcare systems up and running again, in partnership with First Five. The county believes this is a step toward getting parents back to work.

“It has always been a problem to get free childcare since they were very little,” Miriam Natividad-Rodriguez a working mom of three.

Over the last year, child care spaces have either been reduced, or closed permanently. And some are unable to operate hours that work with parents’ schedule.

“They are only taking care of them for a few hours, two days a week. There’s really no use and instead you can get a babysitter. And it’s not cheap for someone to take care of them either. And it’s not the same as them being in daycare learning instead of someone turning on the TV or giving them a tablet,” said Natividad-Rodriguez

The cost of child care is another factor for families, Natividad - Rodriguez mentioned, at one point she had to pay $680 a month, to have her baby girl looked after. This issue is also impacting county employees.

“It’s a reality that impacts everyone and in order for our economy to rebound we really need to make sure as a society and as a community we’re providing for the needs of everybody including our families and our children and our parents,” stated Askew.

Those who need help finding child care can call 211 to be connected with the child care resources in their community.