The little information available on child care staffs has frequently been based on information gleaned through observation; we have little direct knowledge of the experience and perceptions of those who actually do the work. To explore how child care workers themselves understand their work experiences and the burn-out problem, we interviewed 95 staff members of full- and half-day programs in 32 of San Francisco’s 165 child care centers. The study centers were randomly selected and included public programs (those run by the school district as well as Head Start and others receiving public funds) and private centers, both non-profit and proprietary. (author abstract)