The New " Slave Trade " !

A very long time ago we had little need for childcare in Australia.  That was an era where few married women actually had a paid job.  Their occupation  was termed " homemaker " and a woman's lot was deemed to be taking care of the children and preparing wholesome meals for her " breadwinner " husband.

That world no loner exists.  We are now a two income family and the economy is based on both partners contributing to the purchase of a home as well as funding the country by their tax contributions.  The nuclear family has fewer kids and there is an expectation that most children will attain a higher education and gain qualifications from a university.

When a trickle of married women started to enter the workforce, childcare usually meant enlisting Grandma in that role.  The first actual childcare centres were usually a totally unqualified woman minding several children in her home - for a fee.  Today, that has morphed into an industry which demands that childcare workers have rigid qualifications and that centres meet standards.  It is now tasked with " early learning " and preparing kids for the years of school that lay ahead.

Childcare is now a heavily registered industry. The government stipulates how many children can be accommodated and the staff ratio required.  The premises must meet standards for safety and hygiene and staff levels must meet stipulated standards which require university level training.  As a consequence, the fees for each child attending are a significant impost on family incomes.

Unfortunately, this is not reflected in the income that childcare workers receive.  The staff are predominantly women and despite the need for qualifications the pay rates are far lower than in competitive occupations.  These are people who are " educators " and a worker with  qualification 111 will get just $ 21.29 an hour compared with the $ 40.92 received by workers in most other industries.

This is a " Catch 22 " situation.   If childcare workers pay rises to competitive levels, the user fee rises and those fees are already at crisis levels for families earning average incomes, and this is despite generous subsidy levels bestowed on the industry by the government.   It is evident that the Fair Work Commission has a tiger by the tail and faces an impossible decision.

We are now facing a one day stoppage in March.  Childcare workers will walk off the job in a strike to bring their pay dispute to public attention.   Many centres will close, or become ineffective with just management covering essentials and families are urged to keep their children at home, even if that means losing a days pay themselves.

Unfortunately, the only way to a solution seems to be an unfortunate compromise.   The Fair Work Commission needs to grant a pay rise but it will probably fall short of parity with other industries and that will need to be balanced by an increase in the numbers permitted in childcare groups.  That seems to be the only way the circle can be squared - and the obvious outcome is that the quality of care for each child will decrease.

Otherwise, employing dedicated and highly qualified people at far below the accepted pay standard is simply a new form of the slave trade !