ate or agricultural state, and so forth. For most parents of in contemporary American society, the cost of adequate daycare is a major problem. No responsible parent wants to leave their children with inadequate care. Yet, many mothers must work outside of the home, in order to survive economically--whether they are from middle or low income families, or whether they head single-parent families or are in two-parent families, and many cannot afford adequate child daycare. Low and middle income parents of school-age children, and adults heading single-parent families face a real dilemma with respect to child daycare. They cannot afford it, and, yet, they cannot afford to be without such care. A primary justification for the enactment of the Family and Medical Leave Act at the federal level of government was the need for one or both parents to be at home with a child during the period of several weeks immediately subsequent to the birth of the child.
One element of American society contends that all mothers should stay home and take care of their own children--period. These people contend that mothers who use daycare so that they may work outside of the home are, in fact, neglecting their children. Conveniently overlooked in these arguments is the neglect that stems from an inability to adequately provide for one's children, if one does not or cannot work outside of the home. A second element in American society may or may not be opposed to child daycare outside of the home; however, this element is adamantly opposed to any governmental financial support of such care or of any public law mandating that such care be provided by employers (Feldman, 1988, pp. 7-9). This element is often willing to acknowledge that child daycare is a major problem for millions of people; however, they are seldom willing to take any meaningful action to ameliorate the situation, preferring instead to suggest that employers voluntarily provide suc...