It's a sad state of affairs, but supply clearly begets demand when it comes to childcare. According to a report by the The New York Times, 24-hour daycares are sprouting up in some U.S. states.
In hard-done by communities such as Elyria, Ohio, the demand for nighttime care is urgent, as single parents particularly are forced to work graveyard shifts with no one to care for their children.
Even though 'night care' is still a pretty new concept, The Ohio Child Care Resource and Referral Association estimates the number of centres offering nocturnal care shot up by more than half since 2003. Babysitting agencies are often more costly alternatives to childcare centres.
Experts predict that many centres will also expand service to weekends, too.
“It’s the wave of the future,” says Roger Neugebauer, publisher of the trade journal for early childhood care, Exchange Magazine.
It seems Dolly Parton was wrong to complain; in these economically challenged times working 9-5 is a luxury. Around 40 per cent of the entire American workforce does evenings, nights and weekends or early morning shifts.
Certainly we aren't as hard hit as our neighbours down south, yet this childcare trend is also spreading to Canadian providers, which is scary given the recent spate of daycare-related horror stories.
For some parents, clearly there is no other way. Still, it makes my heart heavy to think of a child not getting to sleep in their own bed, being woken at some wee hour of the morning...
Would you consider sending your child to nightcare?
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