EMP Shield’s announcement last week of its plans to build a computer microchip plant in nearby Coffey County could draw hundreds of young families to Southeast Kansas.
The Burlington manufacturer’s plans are for a $1.9 billion investment creating 1,200 jobs.
On top of that, another half-dozen ancillary industries have announced their intentions to set up shop in the 300-acre campus tagged Silicon Prairie Industrial Park. Those businesses will provide another 1,000 jobs.
WHAT COULD go wrong?
For starters, available child care.
A recent poll by the Kansas Chamber of Commerce reported 65 percent of Kansas business leaders cited inadequate child care as the reason they can’t keep fully staffed.
According to the most recent Child Care Supply Demand Report, the current number of child care providers meets 49 percent of the demand.
Today, there are no slots available for infants and toddlers in 21 counties, including neighboring Anderson County. These little ones pose the biggest challenge because they require a higher ratio of caregiver to child, forcing providers to either charge more for their care or reduce the number of infants they will accept.
For some parents, the cost of child care eats too much of their paycheck to make it worthwhile. In Allen County the average weekly rate charged for infants up to 1 year is $127, more than $6,000 a year.
Allen County is currently in a good position, with the number of child care providers meeting the demands of almost 80 percent of the desired capacity for those with infants up to age 3, according to the report.
An estimated 482 children out of 774 age 6 and younger are in families where both heads of household work. A potential 77 child care slots are needed.
Anderson County is meeting the needs of 58 percent of its young families, with 139 children in need of child care services. In Coffey County, 183 children are in immediate need of day care services, meeting the needs of 51 percent.
Those whose jobs require weekend, evening or overnight hours — say, a nurse with a weekend shift — are especially hard-pressed to find child care in a rural community. Of the state’s 105 counties, 60 do not have any means to cover non-traditional hours.
WHAT TO DO?
As occurred during the Covid-19 pandemic, the state needs to amp up its support of daycare providers so they can keep their costs down and doors open.
The average child care employee works more than 57 hours a week for about $24,000 a year — an unsustainable work model.
To that end, Gov. Laura Kelly earlier this year appointed an Early Childhood Transition Task Force whose key purpose is to address the dropping rate of child care centers.
Time is of essence that conclusions are acted on.
The Silicon Prairie enterprise is depending on grants through the federal CHIPS Act (Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors).
