I’m a professional cake decorator. The bakery I used to work at is currently hiring for a manager, and I was considering applying and getting back to work. I was planning out everything and decided to see what daycare averages are.
For a 2 year old, it’s roughly $600 a month. Kind of expensive, but manageable.
I’m currently pregnant and due at the end of next month. I planned to give myself roughly 1 month of maternity leave, so the baby would be 1 month old when I went back to work. The cost per month for an infant is roughly $1200.
That’s $1800 a month for childcare.
If I got paid $16 an hour, and worked 40 hours a week, I would be getting $2560 before taxes each month. After taxes, it would probably be closer to $2000, if that. I would profit roughly $200, which is only a profit if I actually work 40 hours each week, and taxes don’t take most of each check.
It’s practically impossible for people to go to work when they have kids because of the cost of childcare. It’s easier for me to stay home and let my husband work full time, plus overtime. We’ll never be able to buy a house though, because I have no income and he can’t get approved for anything that would get us the space needed for 2 kids.