Caring for children as a career; professionalizing child care would be good for kids and good for working mothers--including those who work minding other people's children. (Income).

HIGH-QUALITY CHILD CARE IS THE BIGGEST missing element in welfare-to-work efforts. Despite additional funding under welfare reform, the care available to most low-income women and their children is usually custodial and unreliable. Many former welfare recipients themselves work providing child care--at low wages in unstable employment.

So upgrading child care would actually serve three related goals: It would provide a key work support for mothers. It would improve outcomes of at-risk children. And it would raise the earnings and career horizons of many people formerly on welfare, ...

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