幼儿教育与劳动力发展的交叉压力

Top 10 Trends to Watch in Ramsey County’s Workforce Landscape: Part Six

As we progress through a series of discussion points from the RealTime Talent report titled Top 10 Trends to Watch in Ramsey County’s Workforce Landscape, 没有什么比儿童保育更能说明威胁经济福祉的因素了. Specifically, 幼儿保育和教育是该县劳动力面临的最重要挑战. This critical sector faces a crisis, 严重的儿童保育短缺有可能加剧劳动力差距. To navigate this turbulence, close attention must be paid to the current status, 必须制定具体举措，把制约因素转化为推动力量.

Access to affordable, safe, 与发展相适应的幼儿教育和照料在多个方面都至关重要. 长期以来，高质量护理的影响一直与儿童的发育和成长有关, 它对一个社区的整体经济发展也至关重要，因为它确保了一个强大的, robust workforce for local employers.

“Without solving this issue, 我们在爱博体育手机版下载的劳动力挑战将继续加剧," said Erin Olson, Senior Director of Strategic Research with RealTime Talent.

Talent supply problems

Top 10 Trends to Watch in Ramsey County’s Workforce Landscape indicates more than 3,700 people work in early education and care businesses in Ramsey County, while an even higher number support childcare needs as family, friend, and neighbor caregivers. 

Even before the pandemic, 对托儿服务的需求超过了提供机构和人才的供应. In fact, since 2016, the county has lost 1,500 licensed spots, constituting 30 percent of total capacity. 在疫情期间，爱博体育手机版下载超过三分之二的项目需要裁员. That trend hasn't fully recovered, illustrated by the fact that as of September 2021, 爱博体育手机版下载近60%的托儿中心每年的出勤率至少下降了25%.

As parents work today, many cannot find quality childcare openings, 造成了劳动力短缺，伤害了明尼苏达州的企业和整个当地, regional and state economy. 这种差异突出表明，需要采取有针对性的干预措施，以吸引和留住这一关键部门的人才.

Reasons for shortages

Numerous explanations define the childcare talent crisis. 幼儿教育面临的核心挑战之一是低报酬. 爱博体育手机版下载保育员的平均年薪是39600美元 falls below the living wage for a single person in the area. Historically, high turnover rates further exacerbate the problem. For example, an estimated 14% of all childcare workers in Ramsey County needed to be replaced in 2021 due to turnover, retirements and other job changes.

托儿行业也受到不一致性的困扰，这种不一致性阻碍了劳动力的持续保留. 初级儿童保育职位往往由教育背景高于要求的人来填补. 虽然爱博体育手机版下载的大多数托儿工作者都有一些大学经历， 80%的托儿工作不需要大专学历，而是寻找 relevant certifications, which can often be obtained through the employer. Additionally, 幼儿教育的发展是有限的，没有明确的职业发展轨迹，从初级托儿工作者的角色.

Action plan

增加对新托儿中心和工人的投资对经济增长至关重要. Olson notes, “战略解决方案和积极措施对于应对这些挑战和确保爱博体育手机版下载幼儿教育的稳定未来至关重要."

In 2022, Ramsey County, in partnership with Think Small, launched the Ramsey County Early Childhood Academy 通过奖励和支持服务吸引和留住儿童保育项目. The three-year, $750,000 initiative is a part of the Ramsey County Investment and Support Efforts program, funded through the American Rescue Plan Act. Think Small estimates that over three years, 该学院将增加420名保育员，创造231个新工作岗位，同时节省972个现有招生名额和90个保育员岗位.

The Academy will:

• provide bonuses of $1,每年提供至少16小时的免费职业发展培训，以留住劳动力，并帮助现有的参与者向当地家庭敞开大门.
• 在受儿童保育危机影响最严重的社区招募儿童保育教育工作者，并为感兴趣的居民提供他们选择的至少16小时的免费培训，以及获得儿童发展助理证书所需的120小时免费培训.
• offer a Build Your Own program that:
• helps participants through the child care start-up process.
• provides advice about how to locate or retrofit space.
• 将刚起步的托儿服务提供商与目前运营高质量项目的经验丰富的导师相匹配.
• 为新的托儿服务提供者提供补偿，以应用他们所学的技能，同时在早期阶段获得反馈.
• delivers training in health, 安全和幼儿园准备的最佳实践与国家许可和家长意识评级相关.

可以产生切实结果的其他措施包括从受COVID-19大流行影响的行业重新定向人才, such as hospitality and tourism, 为了解决早期教育提供者短缺的问题，向初级托儿职位靠拢. 灵活的工作时间安排和有吸引力的福利待遇将是从这些部门招聘人才的关键.

Intertwined dependence

解决儿童保育和早期教育领域的劳动力短缺问题对爱博体育手机版下载企业和居民未来的成功至关重要. “必须采取关键行动，继续采取重要举措，解决劳动力短缺和儿童保育的可负担性问题," said Olson.

The Top 10 Trends to Watch in Ramsey County’s Workforce Landscape 来自实时人才是一个指南针，引导爱博体育手机版下载通过转变劳动力的复杂性. 确定的趋势为有韧性、创新和包容的未来铺平了道路. Each trend will be explored in-depth throughout 2024, charting the course for Ramsey County's workforce in the coming years.