Wisconsin Department
of Children and Families - Division
of Early Care and Education
Bureau of Child Care Subsidy Administration
Wisconsin Shares Handbook
Parents who work third shift may request an authorization for child care for sleep time based on the parent’s need to sleep to remain employed. The local agency will determine a reasonable number of authorized hours on a case-by-case basis. The same family may also request child care for the hours of employment.
Agency workers must consider the maximum hours per day when determining authorized hours (see 16.1.4). This maximum includes hours of employment, travel time, and any sleep hours requested by the parent.
| Example 1: Theresa works from 12 a.m. to 8 a.m. and sleeps from 8:30 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. Theresa requests a child care authorization for her child, Milo, only for the hours that she sleeps. The local agency determines that seven (7) hours per day of sleep time is reasonable and authorizes seven (7) hours of child care per day. It would be reasonable to also include travel time if needed. |
| Example 2: Julie sleeps from 6 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. and works her third shift job from 12 a.m. to 8 a.m. Julie’s parent takes care of Julie’s child, Lola, from 6 p.m. until 9 p.m. and then drops Lola off at her overnight child care provider. Julie requests a child care authorization for Lola for 9 p.m. to 8 a.m. the next day. The local agency determines that the 2.5 hours per day of sleep time requested (9 p.m. to 11:30 p.m.) is reasonable. The agency worker enters Julie’s work schedule in CSAW and uses the “Other” activity type to enter sleep hours from 9 p.m. to 11:59 p.m. |
| Example 3: Ximena works three (3) 12-hour overnight shifts (10 p.m. to 10 a.m.) per week. She requests a child care authorization for her child, George, to attend a licensed group provider for 12 hours of approved activity plus five (5) hours of sleep time, and 30 minutes of travel time each way. Because the limit for a child to be in care at a licensed group provider is 14 hours in a 24-hour period, only 14 hours of care may be authorized. Travel time and sleep time cannot be included in the authorization because the total hours would be over the licensing limit for a 24-hour period. If Ximena decided to only request an authorization for the time she works (12 hours), travel time could be included because George would be in care less than 14 hours in a 24-hour period. |
| Example 4: Martina works from 5 p.m. to 3 a.m. Her spouse, Emilio, works from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Martina sleeps from 3:30 a.m. until 11 a.m. Martina requests an authorization for their child, Paula, from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. plus 30 minutes of travel time for Emilio to travel to work after he drops Paula off for child care in the morning. The local agency determines that the requested three (3) hours per day of sleep time is reasonable. The agency worker enters Martina’s work schedule in CSAW and uses the “Other” activity type to enter sleep hours from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. |
This section last updated 12/1/2022