"If you want to go to work you need childcare right?"

A childcare predicament is effecting the Northland as many families aren't able to find good and affordable childcare.

And for Minnesota, the struggle is one of the biggest in the nation. Zane Bail from the Northland Foundation says, "we have the largest shortage of childcare availability in the state of Minnesota. We're short like 4,800 childcare slots." 

This actually will cause an effect on the workforce and the economy. "if It's a two parent family sometimes one parent decides not to work because they can’t find childcare”, says Bail. 

And unlike before when parents can work from home, many are trying to get back to their careers.
Jess Rangel, the assistant director of cornerstone, says, "when the pandemic happened actually is a lot of kids were pulled so then we didn't need a lot of staff members. Then all the sudden people had to go back to work and they were like I have to get my child back in child care."

Part of the issue when it comes to not having availabilities is not enough employees at those facilities. Bail says, "our childcare programs often aren't able to have all of their class rooms open because the need to have -there's ratios. They have to follow state requirements"
Jess Rangel explains saying, "so for instance if we would like another toddler to come in let's say, where we already have our seven toddlers, we can't add in another one because we wouldn't have two teachers in that classroom."

And with new funding in the current infrastructure bill many or hope that improvements are on the way. "the more resources we have on the federal and state level is really going to help our childcare and it's really going to help us have thriving families, thriving businesses and thriving communities”, says Bail.

To watch the original report and read related stories, follow this link to the WDIO-TV website. https://www.wdio.com/consumer/childcare-shortage-economy-/6255549/