Jenny Rivera
A native of Puerto Rico, Rivera has been a home-based daycare provider in Manhattan for 17 years. She has always loved kids, and opened her program for the opportunity to raise her own young sons while providing a valuable service to her community.
She says she joined the fight for a providers’ union because she has experienced numerous “troubles” with the child-care system.
Among her top concerns are the low pay, a licensing process that she believes takes too long, and she says providers must gain support for paid vacation and sick days.
“This work can be so stressful. You’re working with kids, and different parents come with different attitudes.” If time is taken off to go to the doctor, a provider loses money. Rivera worries about her future, knowing other providers who have put in 30 years caring for children, who struggle to get by. “Now, they’re retired and sick and getting older, but they have nothing to help them. No pension. Most providers don’t have health insurance. We can’t afford it. There’s just not enough support.”
Working with the UFT and ACORN, Rivera says she’s learned to cut through the red tape and get information she needs, such as higher subsidy pay based on a higher market rate. “For 17 years, I’ve been making this low pay. I never knew before that I could do something to change it.”