Study Examines Effects Of Parents' Employment Or Lack Of ... On Children
DETROIT (WWJ) - Michigan has experienced a 64 percent jump in the child poverty rate over the decade and ranks 47th in the country for secure parental employment.
Since 2000, five of the 10 key indicators of child well-being improved, three indicators got worse, and two areas are not comparable based on the most recent year of data available.
Unemployment and foreclosure are two additional indicators addressed in this year's Data Book and message, "America's Children, America's Challenge: Promoting Opportunity for the Next Generation."
In 2010, 11 percent of children had at least one unemployed parent and 4 percent were affected by foreclosure since 2007.
The Annie E. Casey Foundation recommends six strategies that can help move low-income families onto the pathways of prosperity:
1) Strengthen and modernize unemployment insurance and promoting foreclosure prevention and remediation efforts;
2) Preserve and strengthen existing programs that supplement poverty-level wages, offset the high cost of child care, or provide health insurance coverage for parents and children;
3) Help families gain financial knowledge and skills;
4) Promote responsible parenthood and ensure that mothers-to-be receive prenatal care;
5) Ensure that children are developmentally ready to succeed in school; and
6) Promote reading proficiency by the end of third grade.
