Update: It’s important to keep in mind that things are changing quickly for child care in BC. By the time you read this post, some of the questions and issues I have written about may be clearer, we may have further information or answers and circumstances may have evolved. Please keep this in mind. At the end of the post there is a link to a resource listing related to the new child care plan for BC. Regardless; this post conveys much of what many in the field have been feeling, considering and thinking about since the plan was announced. A great many people have contacted me to share their support and thanks for writing this post. It has had a significant amount of visits since it was posted on March 7, 2018 and is currently one of the top ranked blog post on this website.
A few days ago I wrote a post to Early Childhood Educators in BC about the new child care plan that the BC government recently announced. In that post I encouraged ECEs to share their voice about what the plan means to them as individuals and as professionals. I received a lot of feedback on the post and several private messages. Clearly there’s a lot on all of our minds.
This is indeed a time of massive transition in BC when it comes to child care.
Parents have questions.
ECEs have questions.
Child care programs have questions.
In short — there are more questions than answers. And while I’m certain that the good folks working in government and our professional associations are doing their absolute best to try and get information out there as quickly as they can — there are only 24 hours in the day and limited resources.
Increasingly I am feeling that things might be moving a bit too fast.
Now I do understand that during any major change — there will always be more questions than answers. Transitions are messy and even tricky. And often they are especially risky.
Yet — I keep reminding myself that this transition is happening in child care and because of that it must be done with the absolute care and respect that it deserves. After all — a significant number of people impacted by this change are the very ones who are right now working with and caring for our most important assets in BC — our youngest children.
At the very least, ECEs deserve to have as much stress as possible eliminated during this time of change.
In recent days I have been thinking a lot about child care programs — ALL types of child care programs. And I’ve also continued thinking about ECEs.
As the government begins the process of having child care programs “opt-in” for the Child Care Fee Reduction Initiative there are many concerns. And while attempts are clearly being made to answer the questions that programs have there does still seem to be a lot of unknowns.
Perhaps too many.
I’m not sure there is sufficient time to resolve everything that the field is facing before April 2018.
For example there are real concerns about the timing of the payments that government will make to child care programs in order to replace the parent portion of fees.
Many programs are expressing concern that if they sign the new contracts now; they could be facing serious cashflow issues in the coming months. This is due to the fact that the government payment would likely not happen on the 1st of the month. The 1st of the month is typically, when parents pay their fees. A shortage of cashflow could impact the ability of child care programs to pay rent, lease payments or mortgages as well as staff wages on time. That is very concerning.
Child care operators are doing their best to try and support this transition but it’s difficult to do so when the risks of signing on to the initiative appear to have such significant implications.
The mere thought that ECE staff wages could be at risk of being payed late in some programs due to this transition is absolutely unacceptable. I can’t understand how this risk was not mitigated by government well in advance of the child care plan announcement. After all, we clearly know there are MANY issues that we are facing in the child care sector when it comes to attracting and retaining certified staff.
It doesn’t seem wise to put further pressure on ECEs; many of whom are already struggling on a great many levels due to low wages and challenging working conditions.
While I support many aspects of this child care plan — ANYTHING that puts the financial risk of this transition onto the shoulders of child care program operators without sufficient information and a reasonable amount of time to plan is completely unacceptable. And creating the potential for a situation that results in ECE wages possibly having to be paid late in some programs is nothing other than wrong.
Beyond the issues above there are other concerns too.
Many multi-age child care programs have expressed concern about the level of funding they will receive under the fee reduction initiative. I know that there is a lot of discussion happening related to this and the concerns raised certainly seem reasonable.
Then there is the overall issue of child care programs feeling a loss of control related to being able to raise their fees in the future. While I totally understand the need to eliminate the chance of child care programs significantly increasing their fees after signing on to the initiative; it does seem as though there are more flexible ways to address this.
Many child care programs feel they are at risk of losing control of the future of their programs under this new plan. I understand and empathize with their concerns.
While government representatives are expressing an interest in working with all types of child care my sense is that there is a bias toward certain types of child care operators — not for profit rather than private. And while this “might be the right solution” to build a long term universal program it does pose significant challenges and concerns too.
I understand that universal child care is something that we want to establish in BC and that it’s important for children, families, educators and for the good of our economy. However, we must go through this process in a way that doesn’t put well established and respected quality child care programs and services at serious risk.
We need many types of child care in BC. Owner-operator programs, multi-age child care and family child care providers offer truly valuable services in our communities across BC. If we lose many of these programs as result of this new child care plan that is not what is best for child care in BC. And if that is what is coming — well — I will no longer have any level of support for how this child care plan has been put together.
Yes we do need a child care plan for BC. And we need universal child care.
But we need the right plan — one that properly incorporates a range of quality child care options, pays ECEs well, that is universally accessible & affordable and that reduces risk. That is essential. Anything less simply won’t work.
Just today I have heard of multiple areas where programs are considering not “opting-in” at this time. I have also heard of programs that are considering closing due to the uncertainly and risk related to this time of change. And I know of ECEs who are worried about their jobs, their pay cheques in April and their future in the field.
All of this tells us how child care programs and ECEs are feeling right now. And it worries me.
Additionally, while I will write more about this in future posts — I simply must make further mention of the issue of ECE wages.
The following is an excerpt from the child care plan:
“Early Childhood Educators are critical to the quality of care and learning in licensed facilities. Budget 2018 provides $136 million over three years to enhance quality of care, including important new supports for training and development, as well as a workforce development strategy. Working with our partners in child care, we will establish the human resource strategies needed to attract and retain skilled and experienced early learning and child care workers, including consideration of appropriate remuneration.”
Of course I understand why it’s important to complete a workforce development strategy — more information is certainly needed and having a long term strategy is indeed smart thinking.
But — we have a significant issue RIGHT NOW when it comes to attracting and retaining staff to work in child care programs. Releasing this plan without directly mentioning ECE wages has a lot of ECEs feeling very let down and more than a little uneasy.
Let’s face it — many ECEs in the field are tired, on the verge of burnout or are ready to leave the field entirely. Lots have been just hanging on in the hopes that something good was coming. Plus there is also the reality that many gave up and left the field ages ago.
We are a profession and a field this is facing more than chaos. Programs are actively trying to survive a critical crisis daily when it comes to staffing and staff wages. And it’s more than a little hard. It’s on the verge of impossible.
While I understand that there will be efforts made to address the issues of staffing and renumeration in the future — quite frankly “consideration of appropriate remuneration” doesn’t actually give me tremendous confidence that solid solutions are coming quickly.
I know I’m not alone in my concerns related to ECE wages. Many ECEs have told me the same thing.
If ECEs are indeed the backbone of child care — then we deserve to be provided with clear information about what the government is going to do to address ECE wages. Wage enhancements are essential. Sooner rather than later.
Yes – the $136 million that government has mentioned is a lot of money — BUT — what does that really mean when it comes to actual ECE staff wages? How does it translate across the province? We need to know much more about this as soon as possible.
So — as you can tell, I continue to feel mixed emotions about what’s unfolding for child care in BC.
Today I am on the higher side of caution than optimism.
My hope is that the benefits of this new child care plan will eventually far exceed the risks, concerns and fears that so many of us are currently facing and feeling.
These are just a few of the things going through my mind right now. I’m sure you have thoughts on your mind too. I’d love to know what your thinking related to all of this. Please click here to go to a form where you can share your thoughts with me. I may use some of what you share with me in future posts that I write — but I won’t identify any names or programs who share their thoughts with me.
The child care plan for BC has the potential to be positive. Quality child care that is affordable and accessible matters, however the road to universal child care is already more than a little bumpy and still feels very, very long. That’s pretty hard when our collective fuel gauge has been flashing “empty” for decades and we can barely afford to stop for coffee let alone a new tank of gas.
I want the best for ECEs, child care programs, children, families and communities. I’m sure you do to.
Please keep on speaking up and out about the new child care plan for BC.
Together we will get through all of this – one way or the other.
Edit: Since writing this post I have also written an additional post which contains a list of resources related to the new BC child care plan. You can find it here.
As a local childcare operator, I am concerned and nervous about opting in. We have been given very short notice of the program with very little reassurance. I have parents asking when they will receive their $100 when I am still unsure as to whether I have the adequate amount of info to make the right decision. I do like the idea of universal childcare. I feel it is needed. However, we, as operators, need to find reassurance, that we will be able to continue to operate with adequate funding to run quality programs with quality staff. Are our businesses in danger of closing to pubic run programs? How can we compete with those that are heavily funded, pay higher wages, etc.? How can we sustain? We need answers and reassurances.
Thank you for sharing your concerns Sam. I hear you and I agree — more information is needed plus an ultra large dose of reassurance.
Thank you for putting into words your thoughts and concerns so similar to my own. Truly appreciate being able to discuss this with you and hear from others while we navigate these changes.
Thank you Melanie. I am so happy to be able to discuss this with you too. We are all in this together. It is essential that we hear and support each other.
I wholeheartedly agree with what you have shared. I feel like this has been sprung on us and I have yet to receive anything in writing other than the short FAQ documents that were emailed to us. There has been very little information and parents have been emailing and asking what their discount will be and when. Well that is a very difficult question to answer, it’s in black and white for full time childcare but what about the part time care, under 4 hours and over 4 hours for the various age groups? How on earth do I figure out how to divide all of that up?? Opting in seems like the right thing to do but there are so many unanswered questions. It feels so rushed and disorganized, not to mention a lot of work for little pay out.
I too had questions about half day and less than full time care. Also have concerns about fee cap. I didn’t understand their reasoning behaviour and it but it is scary to take away our only source of inclusive me with which we can affect staff wages.
Hi Melanie and Michele – yes this is a time of more questions than answers. And the rush isn’t helping. I do know they have put extra staff on at the Child Care Branch perhaps try calling over to discuss your concerns and questions. The number is 1 888 338-6622.
Since when did it become our responsibility to ask the government for a portion of our monthly paycheck? How about I decide what is fair to charge for my business and the gov’t decide what to subsidize families for based on their income. It’s not looking optimistic for me to opt in.
I hear your concerns. I hope you share your thoughts on this with both the government and the professional associations. We need more perspectives represented as part of the conversation.
I am against this article or misleading discussion as I personally think this is a great change in the child care field as centres will receive more help for parents as it’s another big issue in the child care field that most of the low income families are not able to pay the top up fees and most centres end-up providing childcare with discount or lower fees than required to keep the centre running, while that effect the wages of employees, or most employers are not able to provide extended health insurance benefits for employees, paying extra bills like property taxes etc.
Extra funding will definitely bring positive changes. Just for the first month of the transition into opt-in still take the fees from parents and reimburse them once the centres receive their extra portions, it’s a positive change so we can deal with it in the positive manners and I’m sure parents will be more then happy to cooperate as it’s in their favours. There is no restriction in placed to don’t take the fees before the fundings received, it’s clearly said that centres make sure to pass the support to parents (if they are paying extra top up fees) after they received the fundings. So the above article doesn’t make sense to me to be worry about No cash flow in April etc…..
This extra funding will help and improve the Ece wages as employers will receive more fees than what usually most parents were not able to pay or had to cut the child care need to be able to pay affordable fees or meets the ends. As a child care providers We’ve to think from parent’s perspective too and understand their struggles, and just not worry only about ourselves. I hope I was able to clarify the issue to help make the transition easy and welcomed , instead of finding faults in it as some people can’t stop complaining about everything even when things gets improved. Please let me if you guys think my points make sense.
Thank you Atifa — I appreciate your thoughts and comments. I think you have explained your perspective quite clearly. While you seem to be certain about how the funds will flow and what this plan means not all programs or ECEs are in that place. Hopefully in time we will know much more. I do not feel that what I have written is misleading — it is very reflective of what people and programs are concerned about right now.
I am certainly supportive of change for child care in BC and fully recognize it won’t be easy. Unfortunately I know of programs that have already made decisions to close due to what is unfolding. This is unfortunate. More information and time to understand things doesn’t seem to be unreasonable.
Thank you Jane for such a heartfelt, wonderfully articulated piece. Thank for the work that you do! These concerns are shared by me, my staff and other caregivers in my community. You’ve put them together perfectly. I don’t feel that it is misleading, sharing concerns is validating the very folks who do the important work of childcare.
Hi Ruth, Thank you for your comment. I appreciate it. I am doing my best to be as thoughtful and reflective of what I am hearing from a broad cross section of the field. I do believe there are many concerns and that it is essential that we have clear and open conversation about what is transpiring. Thank you for the important work you and your team are doing in child care.
Atifa, I’m happy that you are confident in your understand of the new initiative. These new fees, more fees that you speak of, are you referring to the 10% increase in the CCOF grant? Other than that the fees will bring in the same revenue as March, no more, no less; parents pay less, government subsidizes the rest. That how I understand it from my discussions with the Ministry. As for the CCOF increase I can tell you that it is not enough to address a .50 raise for my staff of 10 ECE’s. I’m glad to have the increase, but it is not enough to address the wages as you inferred. Yes, this a great for parents, but I’m still hopeful for a direct address to ECE’s currently in the field.
Thank-you Jane, I run a multi-age centre through my home and you mentioned many of my concerns on your blog. Thank-you for your voice as many of us have so many questions and concerns. With so many unanswered questions it’s important to stand together and share information and concerns so that our voices can be heard.
Thank you Barb for your comment. I am so pleased to hear I have mentioned many of your concerns. I am glad that we are able to work together and support each other. Thank you for the work you do through your multi-age centre.