Oklahoma WorkTrends 2024

Oklahoma’s Workforce

Households with children

According to the U.S. Census American Community Survey, in 2022 it was estimated that out of a total of 276,038 children under the age of 6 years, 177,967 (64.5%) had all parents in the workforce. This number increased to 70.7% for children aged 6-17 years. The Center for American progress estimates that 55% of Oklahomans live in a childcare desert with that number increasing to 57% for Hispanic/Latino families and 68% for rural families. A childcare desert is defined as: Any census tract with more than 50 children under age 5 that contains either no childcare providers or so few options that there are more than three times as many children as licensed childcare slots. – Center for American Progress

Utilizing data from the Department of Oklahoma Human Services, Table 1 outlines the changes in childcare facilities and capacity from 2017-2023.

Table 1

Year

Total Facilities

Total all capacity

2017

3,317

122,253

2018

3,185

120,930

2019

3,038

117,031

2020

2,986

115,771

2021

2,825

113,360

2022

2,841

116,591

2023

3,108

124,186

Table 1. Source: https://childcaredeserts.org/2018/?state=OK

WorkTrends 2024

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