Indicators of Child, Family, and Community Connections:

Family, Work, and Child Care

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Parental employment by family structure

The majority of families with children have at least one parent who is employed. In 2002, forty-four percent of families with children had two employed parents either full- or part-time; 25 percent had one employed and one nonemployed parent; and 3 percent had two nonemployed parents. Twenty-one percent of families with children had one employed single parent and 7 percent had one nonemployed single parent.

The distribution of full-time parental employment activity varies by age of youngest child in the household. Among families with a child under age 6, twenty-eight percent had one full-time working parent and one nonworking parent, but only 21 percent had two full-time working parents in 2002. The opposite was true for families with older children in 2002: only 17 percent had one full-time working parent and one nonworking parent, whereas 29 percent of these families had two full-time working parents.

Distribution of families with children under age 18,
by family structure and parental employment: 2002

Distribution of families with children under age 18, by family structure and parental employment: 2002. See text for explanation.

Source: Child Trends' analyses of March 2002 Current Population Survey data.

Table 9.
Distribution of families with children under age 18
by family structure and parental employment,
by age of child: 2002
  Total Youngest child under 6 Youngest child ages 6-17
Total(a) 100.0 100.0 100.0
Two Parents in Household 72.2 74.9 70.2
  Two employed parents 43.8 39.4 47.2
    Both full-time 25.5 21.1 28.8
    One full-time, one part-time 16.4 16.4 16.4
    Both part-time 2.0 1.9 2.0
  One employed parent, one nonemployed parent 25.4 32.0 20.4
    Full-time 21.8 27.7 17.4
    Part-time 3.6 4.3 3.1
  No employed parent 3.0 3.6 2.6
One Parent in Household 27.8 25.1 29.8
  One employed parent 20.8 17.4 23.3
    Full-time 15.8 12.6 18.2
    Part-time 5.0 4.8 5.1
  No employed parent 7.0 7.6 6.5
a. Percentages may not add to 100 due to rounding.
Note: Estimates of two-parent households include only married couples, and exclude families with unmarried partners. Parents in the armed forces are not considered in the labor force. Among those who were working but not at their jobs the previous week, part-time versus full-time employment was determined using the number of hours that the person usually works each week at his/her main job.
Source: Child Trends' analyses of March 2002 Current Population Survey data.

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Work-family stress

In 1997, approximately a third of mothers and fathers reported that they did not have enough time for their family because of their jobs. Mothers who worked full-time were more likely than mothers who worked part-time to report that their jobs interfered with their family life. Thirty-seven percent of mothers employed full-time and 14 percent of mothers employed part-time in 1997 reported that they "often" or "very often" did not have enough time for their families because of their jobs.

Percentage of working mothers
who report that they do not have enough time for their families because of their jobs,
by employment status: 1997

Percentage of working mothers who report that they do not have enough time for their families because of their jobs, by employment status: 1997. See text for explanation.

Source: Child Trends' analyses of the National Study of the Changing Workforce, 1997.

Table 10.
Percentage of working parents(a)
who report that they do not have enough time for their family because of their job,
by gender and selected characteristics:(b )1997
  Mothers Fathers
Total 32.2 33.1
Employment Status
  Part-time 14.1 47.1
  Full-time 36.6 32.9
Marital Status
  Married 33.1 32.0
  Non-married 30.6 40.1
a. Parents include respondents with residential children under the age of 18.
b. Job interference with family life corresponds to parents' reports of not having enough time "often" or "very often" for their family because of their jobs.
Source: Child Trends' analyses of the National Study of the Changing Workforce, 1997.

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Family income

In 2001, the median total money income for households with a related child under 18 years old was $52,177. Households headed by a married couple with a related child under 18 had a median income of $65,319, while unmarried couple households had a median income of $ 39,886. Households headed by a male with no spouse had a median income of $36,922, and households headed by a female with no spouse had a median income of $25,167.

Median total money income in households with a related child under 18 years old,
by family structure: 2001

Median total money income in households with a related child under 18 years old, by family structure: 2001. See text for explanation.

Note: Unmarried couples may also be included in the categories of female householder no spouse present, and male householder, no spouse present, if children of the householder are present.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, March 2002. (http://ferret.bls.census.gov/macro/032002/hhinc/new04_000.htm)

Table 11.
Median family income among households with a related child under 18 years old,
by selected characteristics: 2001
  Dollars
Total $52,177
Race and Hispanic Origin(a)
  White, non-Hispanic $61,707
  Black $32,315
  Hispanic $35,000
Family Structure
  Married couple household $65,319
  Unmarried couple household $39,886
  Female householder, no spouse $25,167
  Male householder, no spouse $36,922
a. Persons of Hispanic origin may be of any race.
Note: Unmarried couples may also be included in the categories of female householder no spouse present, and male householder, no spouse present, if children of the householder are present.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, March 2002. (http://ferret.bls.census.gov/macro/032002/hhinc/new04_000.htm)

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Patterns of child care

In 2001, thirty-nine percent of children from birth through age 6 were cared for solely by a parent, while 61 percent participated in some sort of nonparental care. Children under 3 years of age were more likely to be in parental care only than children ages 3 to 6 years (48 percent compared to 26 percent). The type of care arrangement chosen also is related to the child's age. While similar percentages of 0-2 year olds and 3-6 year olds were cared for in a home by a relative (23 and 22 percent, respectively) or a nonrelative (18 and 14 percent, respectively), much higher percentages of 3-6 than 0-2 year olds participated in center-based programs (56 percent compared with 17 percent).

Percentage of children from birth through age 6, not yet in kindergarten,
by type of care arrangement and age group: 2001

Percentage of children from birth through age 6, not yet in kindergarten, by type of care arrangement and age group: 2001. See text for explanation.

Note: Some children participate in more than one type of arrangement, so the sum of all arrangement types exceeds the total percentage in nonparental care.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Program Participation Survey of the National Household Education Surveys Program, 2001. As reported in Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics. (2003). America's children: Key national indicators of well-being, 2003. Washington, DC: Author.

Table 12.
Percentage of children from birth through age 6, not yet in kindergarten,
by type of care arrangement, by selected characteristics: 2001
  Parental care only Total in nonparental care(a) Care in a home(b) Center-based program(c)
By a relative By a nonrelative
Total 39 61 23 16 34
Age/Grade in School
  0-2 48 52 23 18 17
  3-6, not yet in kindergarten 26 74 22 14 56
Poverty Status
  Below poverty 46 54 26 10 27
  At or above poverty 37 63 22 18 35
Mother's Highest Level of Education (d)
  Less than high school 56 44 21 9 21
  High school graduate or equivalent 43 58 26 14 28
  Some college(e) 37 64 25 16 36
  College graduate 32 69 17 23 42
a. Some children participate in more than one type of nonparental care arrangement. Thus, detailed percentages do not sum to the total percentage of children in nonparental care.
b. Relative and nonrelative care can take place in either the child's own home or another home.
c. Center-based programs include day care centers, prekindergartens, nursery schools, Head Start programs, and other early childhood education programs.
d. Those few children without a mother in the home are excluded from estimates of mother's highest level of education.
e. Some college includes vocational or technical school after high school, as well as college attendance.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Program Participation Survey of the National Household Education Surveys Program, 2001. As reported in Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics. (2003). America's children: Key national indicators of well-being, 2003. Washington, DC: Author.


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