The pandemic hit the already vulnerable early childhood education (ECE) workforce especially hard, causing almost 40 percent of child care providers to shut their doors and many teachers to lose their jobs. In 2021, enrollment in state-funded preschool also dropped for the first time in 20 years--a nearly 20 percent decline that erased a decade of growth. Because of the workforce's critical role in supporting children, families, businesses, and the economy, when the ECE system struggles, communities feel the effects. Federal relief funds provide an important opportunity to invest in and transform the ECE workforce. Many states developed plans to address the challenges that the workforce faces. However, without sustainable, long-term strategies for increasing compensation, they risk exhausting funding on short-term investments while maintaining a long-term funding gap for educators.