Is being 3 hours late to pick up a child from daycare considered abandonment?

If you did not bother to contact the Daycare and give them a reason for being late (a three hour delay should be only used in an emergency such as working late unexpectedly or a vehicle broke down, etc.) then yes, this could be considered abandonment. Daycares have certain hours they look after children and it's not right not to contact them. It's also a very long time for a child to have to wait for their parent and a worry for the child.