Low wages and inconsistent compensation drive instability and turnover in Colorado’s early childhood workforce.

Despite their critical role in child development, early childhood educators in Colorado face persistently low wages and limited compensation growth, contributing to workforce instability and turnover. The Colorado Department of Early Childhood (CDEC) has prioritized improving compensation, supported by a $3.85 million grant from the Early Educator Investment Collaborative, and needed benchmark analyses to inform the design and evaluation of strategies to improve workforce compensation.

NORC analyzed linked administrative data to assess wage patterns and compare them to benchmark values.

To understand how current compensation aligns with Colorado’s recommended salary benchmarks and to identify disparities across settings, roles, and regions, NORC, as a subcontractor to the Colorado Evaluation and Action Lab, analyzed administrative data on wages, job roles, and credential levels among early childhood professionals in center-based programs.

NORC used data from the Professional Development Information System (PDIS) and Unemployment Insurance wage records, linked through the Linked Information Network of Colorado (LINC), to examine compensation among over 9,000 full-time early childhood professionals during the 2022–2023 school year. The analysis explored wage variation by job role, credential level, race/ethnicity, and program setting (school-based vs. community-based). It also assessed how wages compared to Colorado’s regional salary scale targets.