Jenny Macklin Urges Local Child Care Providers to Apply for Wages Grants

Media Release.

Friday, 19 July 2013

Jenny Macklin MP has urged local child care providers to apply for grants under a $300 million Federal Government Fund that will boost the wages of early childhood educators.

“The Early Years Quality Fund is about moving entirely away from the out dated view that early childhood educators are merely babysitters - they are so much more than that,” Jenny Macklin said.

 

“The local child care providers in our local community deliver great services to the community."

 

“The early childhood professionals are some of the hardest working people in my community."

 

“This Fund will deliver real increases to wages and help will go some way to recognising the professionalism and qualifications of this highly valued workforce.”

 

Many education and care providers already pay above the Award - with about one in four staff covered by enterprise agreements and many other staff paid at above award rates through other arrangements.

 

The Government’s Early Years Quality Fund will support more education and care providers to deliver wage increases to this sector through enterprise agreements - $3.00 per hour increases for Certificate III qualified educators with proportional increases across the classification scale.

 

Program Guidelines have been released for Long Day Care providers to gain a full understanding of the assessment process and eligibility criteria before applying.

 

Grants open on 23 July and applications will be assessed on an ongoing basis.

 

The Program Guidelines and further information about the Early Years Quality Fund can be found at www.deewr.gov.au/early-years-quality-fund