According to a new report from the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment (CSCCE) at the University of California, Berkeley, preschool teachers and child care workers earn 38% less than their colleagues in the K-8 system. "The crisis existed before the pandemic but increasingly folks are seeing how critical child care is to the economy," report co-author and senior research specialist Caitlin McLean . "My hope is that the heightened awareness of this crisis prompts us to make a real change. Child care workers are among the lowest-paid workforce in the country. We have it backwards. The early years are critical for brain development. We need our best and brightest taking care of our youngest children." For more on this, see our press release at Berkeley News.