Thank you for signing our petition ahead of the 2024 Federal Budget or sending an email to your local MP. We are thrilled that in Tuesday night’s Federal budget, the Albanese government made a commitment to fund a wage increase for early childhood educators!
A wage increase for early childhood educators is HUGE. It acknowledges the crucial role educators play in shaping the future of our children and begins to redress the longstanding inequity of their work and profession not being valued and respected.
Why This Matters:
- Recognition of Value: Early childhood educators have been chronically underpaid and undervalued despite their qualifications, skills and the enormous value they deliver in shaping the brains and lives of little children.
- Economic Security: Most early childhood educators are women, who will see their own economic security improve along with the professional recognition.
- Sustainability of the Sector: Better wages will help stem the loss of skilled educators who have been leaving a sector they love because they can’t afford to stay. It will help grow and develop a strong pipeline of early childhood educators and teachers, and more children will benefit.
Where to from here?
In the next few weeks and months we will learn more about exactly how much wages will increase, as well as how and when the money will leave the government bank accounts and go directly into the pockets of early childhood educators.
In the meantime we will keep campaigning for our other goals, especially better access to early childhood education and care in regional, rural and remote Australia! And we’ll keep campaigning for every child to have have access to quality, inclusive early childhood education and care.
Tuesday marked the third time I’ve attended the Federal Budget Lock Up in Parliament House on behalf of The Parenthood, and I’ve shared some reflections on the evening. If you want to read my blog post about it, click here.
We will keep you updated with major developments, and as we learn more about the implementation of the wage increase.
Thanks again for your support!
With a high five from afar,
Georgie
