Early Head Start Teacher Salary & Pay Data
BLS OEWS May 2025 · Related occupation (proxy): SOC 39-9011 Childcare Workers
BLS publishes no wage for Head Start or Early Head Start, so this is not Early Head Start pay; it is all childcare workers (SOC 39-9011), the closest occupation for infant and toddler classroom staff.
Annual figures are BLS hourly wages × 2,080 hours. OEWS covers wage-and-salary workers only, so it leaves out the self-employed, workers in private households, overtime pay and most bonuses.
What the BLS figure covers
These are BLS figures for every worker in SOC 39-9011 Childcare Workers, a related occupation shown only as a benchmark.
BLS publishes no separate series or percentiles for early head start teachers, so this page does not show a percentile table for the role.
Head Start pay rules
BLS publishes no wage for Head Start or Early Head Start as a program, so no figure on this page is Head Start pay.
The 2024 Head Start Program Performance Standards require programs, by August 1, 2031, to pay each Head Start teacher an annual salary at least comparable to public-school preschool teachers in the local school district, adjusted for qualifications, experience and hours.
On May 12, 2026, the Administration for Children and Families proposed removing all Head Start wage and benefit requirements, so that pay comparability is not guaranteed.