ABSTRACT
One of the most significant demographic changes in the late 20th century has been the unprecedented rise in maternal employment. In 1940, only 1 out of 10 women with children worked outside of the home; by 1970, this had risen to 1 out of 3; and by 1997 to 2 out of 3(U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1996, 1999). As thousands of mothers have moved from household labor to out-of-home employment, concomitant increases have occurred in the need for child-care and early education programs for young children. The passage of the 1996 welfare reform bill (the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act [PRWORA]), which mandated time limits and employment for most mothers on welfare, has pushed a substantial new group of very low-income families into the child-care market. Welfare reform also brought increased attention to the central role that high-quality, accessible, and dependable child care plays in supporting employment and self-sufficiency among mothers and healthy development among children.
