[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":3,"doc-seo-583376-105":59,"doc-detail-583376-en":131},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",[7,13,18,23,28,33,38,43,48,51,55],{"id":8,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":10,"show_sort_weight":11,"slug":12},1,"Document","Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":14,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":15,"show_sort_weight":16,"slug":17},2,"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":19,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":20,"show_sort_weight":21,"slug":22},4,"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":24,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":25,"show_sort_weight":26,"slug":27},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":29,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":30,"show_sort_weight":31,"slug":32},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":34,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":35,"show_sort_weight":36,"slug":37},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":39,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":40,"show_sort_weight":41,"slug":42},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":44,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":45,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":47},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":46,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":49,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":50},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":52,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":53,"show_sort_weight":52,"slug":54},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":56,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":57,"show_sort_weight":24,"slug":58},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":60,"data":61},"ok",{"site_id":62,"language":63,"slug":64,"title":65,"keywords":66,"description":67,"schema_data":68,"social_meta":124,"head_meta":126,"extra_data":128,"updated_unix":130},105,"en","data-snapshot-child-care-centers-compete-with-californias-20-fast-food-wage","DATA SNAPSHOT - Child Care Centers Compete With California’s $20 Fast Food Wage","","February 2026 data snapshot analyzing early care and education wages in California using CSCCE’s Workforce Study. Comparing 2020 to 2025, it shows wage growth that varies by job role and program type, despite inflation. Assistant teacher pay did not keep pace with minimum wage increases, while lead teacher pay rose more strongly. Findings contrast center-based programs with public funding, including voucher-funded settings and Head Start.",{"@graph":69,"@context":123},[70,84,106],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":40,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/research-report/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/data-snapshot-child-care-centers-compete-with-californias-20-fast-food-wage/583376/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":99,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":100,"interactionStatistic":101},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/data-snapshot-child-care-centers-compete-with-californias-20-fast-food-wage/583376.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"Jake","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-11-14","2026-10-15",true,{"@type":102,"interactionType":103,"userInteractionCount":105},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":104},"ViewAction",11,{"@type":107,"mainEntity":108},"FAQPage",[109,115,119],{"name":110,"@type":111,"acceptedAnswer":112},"What wage changes does the snapshot report from 2020 to 2025 in California?","Question",{"text":113,"@type":114},"Wages increased since 2020, but not evenly across roles and program types. The snapshot highlights that inflation rose about 20%, while the minimum wage rose about 37.5% by 2025.","Answer",{"name":116,"@type":111,"acceptedAnswer":117},"What are the typical 2025 starting wages for assistant and lead teachers?",{"text":118,"@type":114},"In 2025, the typical starting wage was about $18 per hour for assistant teachers and $21 per hour for lead teachers. About one in five centers used the $16.50 minimum wage for assistant starting pay.",{"name":120,"@type":111,"acceptedAnswer":121},"Why does the document say early educators face challenges competing on wages?",{"text":122,"@type":114},"It states employers in ECE often rely on charging higher fees to parents, but parents already pay a large share of their salary to enroll infants. Publicly funded programs must keep wages within fixed grants, so wage improvements depend on increased funding or other resources.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":83,"og:type":125,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":95,"og:description":67},"article",{"robots":127,"canonical":83},"index,follow",{"doc_id":129,"site_id":62},583376,1792191801,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":132},{"doc_id":129,"user_id":133,"nickname":92,"user_avatar":134,"doc_module":4,"category_id":39,"category_name":40,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":67,"doc_content":135,"file_id":136,"file_url":137,"file_type":138,"file_size":139,"view_count":105,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":34,"language":140,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":141,"faqs":142,"seo_title":143,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":144,"read_time":145,"preview_page_count":4},962084928904,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_155a257f0dc6eb9ab79c44ca47cae57d","DATA SNAPSHOT  \nFebruary 2026  \nChild Care Centers Compete With California’s $20 Fast Food Wage  \nby Anna Powell, Wanzi Muruvi, and Abby Copeman Petig  \nPoor compensation is built into the fabric of early care and education in the United States. The Center for the Study of Child Care Employment (CSCCE) tracks wages in California through our ongoing Workforce Study. In comparing our data from 2020 and 2025, we find wages have risen since 2020, but not evenly across job roles and program types. While inflation increased by 20 percent, the minimum wage increased much faster at 37.5 percent. Moreover, California now has a $20 minimum wage for fast food that exceeds pay for most assistant teachers.  \nKey Findings  \n1  \n2  \n3  \n4  \n5  \nThe typical starting wage for child care centers was approximately $18 per hour for assistant teachers and $21 per hour for lead teachers in 2025. However, one in five centers used the $16.50 minimum wage to set starting pay.  \nCalifornia’s minimum wage rose by approximately 37.5 percent from 2020 to 2025. While lead teacher starting pay rose at a similar pace (40 percent), assistant teacher starting pay struggled to keep up (28 .6 percent) .  \nThe upper end of the pay scale typically falls at $21 per hour for assistants, just above the state’s new fast food minimum wage of $20 per hour. Lead teacher pay tops off at $26.60 on average (up to $32 in Head Start) .  \nPrograms without any public funding had the lowest starting pay for assistants in 2020, but they raised wages faster than other centers by 2025. They now offer better starting pay than voucher-funded centers.  \nCalifornia’s proposed 2026-2027 budget does not increase funding for vouchers, meaning centers in the subsidy system may continue to lag behind.  \nCenter for the Study of Child Care Employment, University of California, Berkeley [https://cscce.berkeley.edu](https://cscce.berkeley.edu)  \nPoor compensation is built into the fabric of early care and education in the United States.  \nWhat is an early educator’s passion worth? To the professionals working in early care and education (ECE), their jobs are a source of joy and pride. Unfortunately, the wages they receive are another story.  \n“Watching children grow, learn new skills, and build confidence day by day is incredibly fulfilling... Knowing that I’m contributing to a strong foundation for their future success gives me a deep sense of purpose and joy.”  \n—San Diego County Assistant Teacher earning $16.50 per hour  \n“The rewarding part [of my job] is knowing that my students are ready for kindergarten when they leave my class. When I talk to the kindergarten teacher, she says they are engaged and understanding concepts because of the lessons and techniques I used. I am happy I was able to give them those tools and help them grow.”  \n—Riverside County Lead Teacher earning $16.50 per hour  \nCSCCE tracks wages in California through our ongoing Workforce Study. In comparing our data from 2020 and 2025, we find wages have risen since 2020, but not evenly across job roles and program types. California’s minimum wage rose to $16.50 per hour in 2025, one of the highest in the country but well below a living wage of $28.72 for a single adult (let alone the $50.83 needed for a single parent with one child) . Moreover, California has a minimum wage of $20 for  fast food workers. By contrast, we estimate that child care center starting pay was only $18 for assistants and $21 for lead teachers in 2025.  \nThese economic conditions make it very challenging for employers in ECE to be competitive. Typically, a child care center can only raise wages by charging higher fees to parents, but program directors are acutely aware that a single parent already pays about half of her salary to enroll an infant. Meanwhile, publicly funded programs like Head Start and State Preschool budget for wages out of a fixed grant, so they can typically only improve wages when legislators allocate more funding (or if they c","cbCaiort8CikDgca","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaiort8CikDgca","pdf",344921,"English","# Key Findings\n## Starting wages and minimum wage impacts\n## Pay scale ranges across program types\n## Public funding and the 2026-2027 voucher budget","[{\"question\":\"What wage changes does the snapshot report from 2020 to 2025 in California?\",\"answer\":\"Wages increased since 2020, but not evenly across roles and program types. The snapshot highlights that inflation rose about 20%, while the minimum wage rose about 37.5% by 2025.\"},{\"question\":\"What are the typical 2025 starting wages for assistant and lead teachers?\",\"answer\":\"In 2025, the typical starting wage was about $18 per hour for assistant teachers and $21 per hour for lead teachers. About one in five centers used the $16.50 minimum wage for assistant starting pay.\"},{\"question\":\"Why does the document say early educators face challenges competing on wages?\",\"answer\":\"It states employers in ECE often rely on charging higher fees to parents, but parents already pay a large share of their salary to enroll infants. Publicly funded programs must keep wages within fixed grants, so wage improvements depend on increased funding or other resources.\"}]","DATA SNAPSHOT - Child Care Centers Compete With California’s $20 Fast Food Wage | PDF",1792046936,18]