Balancing caring for children and maintaining a job is a challenge for many. Between busy schedules of school, work, day care, and different holidays, managing caregiving while work demands attention can be overwhelming. Parents work hard to provide for their children, and sometimes it is not always possible for one parent to stay home while the other works. 

Facts About Working Parents

Based on recent Census data for households in 2024:

  • 79.6% of families have at least one employed family member.
  • 91.4% of families with children had at least one employed parent.
  • The labor force participation rate for mothers with children under age 18 was 74%, unchanged from 2023.
  • Married mothers are less likely to work than unmarried mothers.
  • By contrast, married fathers are more likely to participate in the labor force than unmarried fathers.
  • More than two in three (68.3%) mothers with young children (under age six) participated in the labor force compared to 94.9% of fathers with children under age six.
  • In 62.6% of families with children under the age of six, both parents work. This increases to 69.4% of families with children aged 6 to 17. 

Flexible Work Honors Working Parents

Different models of work, such as independent contracting through freelancing or the gig economy, make balancing caregiving and work manageable. Gig work or independent contracting allows parents to work on their own schedule around their family instead of entering and exiting the workforce seasonally as school schedules change. 

However, flexibility in work is at risk. Independent contractors faced war during the Biden-Harris administration with its restrictive independent rule. Independent contractors in California and now, potentially, New Jersey, must still fight against policies that make it difficult to keep their independent status. 

Other barriers to flexible work have been childcare options. The median annual price for a full day of care for one child in 2022 ranged from $6,500 to $15,600. Several policies have impacted the cost of child care, including a 2023 executive order from President Biden that increased subsidies to certain childcare facilities. However, parents prefer informal care arrangements, so subsidizing formal child care facilities did not address the problem of childcare affordability. 

While these subsidies went into place in 2023, families with two working parents still need childcare solutions that take their preferences into account. Reducing regulations on child care that do not impact the quality of care or safety can reduce the costs for childcare providers. One estimate finds that costs could be reduced by between $850 and $1,890 per child per year by eliminating regulations not related to the quality of care.

Bottom Line

The best way to honor working parents this National Working Parents Day is to strengthen flexible work options through independent contracting and more affordable childcare options.