Nearly 9,000 children of military families were waiting for child care in 2025, and a shortage of workers is a key reason for the gap. The shortage is forcing some parents to give up jobs they need.
Jessica Maloney, an Army spouse at Fort Campbell, Ky., said she can’t take a job because she has no reliable childcare for her three children, all under 6. Her household relies on two incomes, but hers has disappeared.
Low pay, slow hiring and limited hours have made it hard for the Defense Department to fill positions in the nation’s largest employer-sponsored child care program, per reports.
Maloney said her family has turned to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to help put food on the table, but the assistance still falls short. “It shouldn’t be this hard to go to work,” Maloney said.
Low Pay and Hiring Delays Deepen Child Care Shortages
The GAO reported in June that the military services employed about 19,000 child care workers in fiscal 2024, caring for nearly 172,000 children.
More than a third of the unmet need was concentrated in five areas: Hawaii, the National Capital Region, Norfolk, Va., San Antonio and San Diego.
Members of the President’s Military Spouse Commission said entry-level workers at Camp Pendleton and Miramar in California earn roughly $18 to $19 an hour.
Workers at Navy facilities in Point Loma earn about $21. At some high-cost installations, locality pay adds $3 to $5 an hour.
A former provider at Joint Base San Antonio said in an interview that she loved the work but couldn’t afford to stay.
Report found that onboarding at some installations can take one to six months, with background checks adding more time.
In April 2026, the Army introduced a new pay model aimed at raising staffing levels at its child development centers above 90 percent, per reports. Only 22 of the service’s 68 installations had reached that level at the time, and nearly 3,000 children were waiting for a space.
Early Shifts and Sudden Moves Complicate Child Care
Even when a space opens, it may not match a military schedule. Tiffany Orner, an Air Force veteran and board member of Operation Childcare Project, said spouse groups are full of requests for sitters for shifts starting at 5 a.m., or for families who move within weeks. Military couples face the toughest scramble when planned care falls through.
When base care isn’t available, the Defense Department offers fee assistance for approved civilian providers. The GAO has found those providers can face administrative hurdles and unclear eligibility rules.
The commission has also discussed a five-location pilot that would extend assistance to certain faith-based providers exempt from state licensing.
Orner urged officials to track how many workers are hired and stay, not just which programs are announced.
