Child Care Now joins the Coalition of Child Care Advocates of BC (CCCABC) in welcoming the announcement of an additional $2/hour in publicly funded wage enhancements for early childhood educators in British Columbia and an additional $2,000 annual top-up for educators with infant/ toddler or special needs certification.
The new government funding, which brings the wage enhancement to $6/hour, signals recognition that the problem of low wages in early learning and child care must be addressed.
However, child care advocates are calling for further systemic reforms and long-term workforce strategies, including:
- the implementation of a province-wide, publicly-funded wage grid of at least $30 to $40/hour; and
- increased access to affordable public post-secondary ECE education.
A comprehensive, publicly-funded wage grid would lift the wages of all who work in the sector and would recognize credentials and years of service while providing permanence and stability for the sector,” said Child Care Now Executive Director Morna Ballantyne, echoing Sharon Gregson, spokesperson for the Coalition of Child Care Advocates of BC.
“A wage enhancement is just a top-up and does none of those things. So, we are glad to see Minister Lore recommit to introducing a wage grid,” said Gregson.
Read more about the Coalition of Child Care Advocates’ ECE Wage Grid proposal