WAGE$ Missouri

Child Care WAGE$® Missouri (WAGE$ Missouri) is an education-based salary supplement program offered through Child Care Aware® of Missouri to strengthen and stabilize the early childhood workforce. WAGE$ Missouri provides salary supplement payments directly to early childhood educators based on their level of formal education and their commitment to remain with their child care program.

At its core, WAGE$ Missouri is designed to address the biggest challenge of high turnover driven by low wages in early childhood education. By rewarding education and continuity, helps increase retention, support ongoing professional growth, and improve compensation for those working with children from birth to age five. The result is a more stable, qualified workforce and stronger, more consistent relationships for young children during their most critical years of development.

WAGE$ Missouri supports individual educators without adding financial burden to child care programs or families. Supplements are paid directly to educators and do not impact program budgets, base wages or parent fees. By investing in the people who care for young children every day, WAGE$ Missouri helps build a stronger early childhood system where early childhood educators are valued, programs are more stable and children benefit from consistent, high-quality care.

WAGE$ Missouri is launching as a pilot initiative in St. Louis County from 2026–2028, making it the first county in the state to invest in this innovative model. During this pilot phase, eligibility is limited to only educators working 30 hours or more a week in licensed and license-exempt child care programs located within St. Louis County.

Child Care WAGE$® Missouri is licensed by the Early Years in Chapel Hill, North Carolina and is grounded in research showing that better compensation and higher education levels among educators lead to improved outcomes for children.