Sir, – I welcome the news (News, June 21st) that the Government has approved the establishment of a new system for setting pay in the childcare sector.
As a mother availing of creche services for my young child, I have found it so disheartening to see professionally qualified and caring staff too often leave the sector to pursue other careers.
The reality of low wages persists, even though parents are paying through the nose for their children to attend these settings. The two schemes introduced in recent years – the National Childcare Scheme (NCS) and the Early Childhood Care and Education Scheme (ECCE) – in my experience, have done little to ease the financial burden on families.
Lack of State provision of childcare services has resulted in the sector being dominated by private companies. The reality of being profit-driven has consequences. Parents can barely afford the high cost of quality care and the people carrying out this essential work are unable to make ends meet.
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The NCS claims it is going some way to addressing the problems, stating on its website that it provides a “flexible, future-focused and sustainable platform to invest in quality Early Learning and Care”.
This “investment” is a drop in the ocean. In the meantime, families continue with their struggle to pay the hefty monthly bill. And childcare workers continue with their struggle to eke out a living.
The situation is not sustainable. I look forward to the findings of the Joint Labour Committee.
– Yours, etc,
STEPHANIE METCALFE,
Co Wicklow.