CUPE Saskatchewan and Child Care Now Saskatchewan recently wrapped up a province-wide town hall tour, joined by Shadow Minister of Early Learning and Child Care Joan Pratchler. The tour brought attention to cuts to Saskatchewan’s early learning and child care system and provided an opportunity to hear directly from parents, workers, providers, and community members affected by them.
The Sask. Party introduced a series of cuts on July 1 that affect child care workers, providers, and families across the province.
The cuts include ending tuition-free levels II and III early childhood educator training, making it more difficult for workers to access the education they need to advance in the field.
They also include freezing the creation of new child care spaces at a time when many families are already struggling to find care.
Families are facing new auxiliary fees, adding costs for parents and undermining the promise of $10-a-day child care.
“Across the town halls, we heard from parents, workers, and providers about the real impact these cuts are having,” said Kent Peterson, president of CUPE Saskatchewan. “These cuts make it harder for families to find the care they need, harder for workers to build a career in early learning and child care, and harder for providers to keep delivering the services their communities rely on.”
The Sask. Party also ended “stacking” which allowed providers to receive funding for different children using the same child care space on different days. Providers are now funded for only one space, leaving some centres thousands of dollars short each month.
“Providers have built their budgets and their programs around being able to offer flexible spaces that meet the needs of families,” said Cara Werner, chair of Child Care Now Saskatchewan. “Now many are losing thousands of dollars each month and having to make incredibly difficult decisions about whether they can afford to keep their doors open. This is a serious warning sign for the future of child care in Saskatchewan.”
The town hall tour began in Moose Jaw, with stops in Regina and Yorkton, before wrapping up in Prince Albert. Throughout the tour, parents, early learning and child care workers, providers, and community members had the opportunity to share their experiences and discuss what is needed to strengthen Saskatchewan’s child care system.
CUPE Saskatchewan and Child Care Now Saskatchewan continue to call on the Sask. Party to reverse the July 1 cuts, restore affordability, expand child care spaces, conduct a full review of the funding model, and invest in a strong early learning and child care workforce.
To stay in the loop, visit cupesask.ca/childcare and saskatchewan.childcarenow.ca.
CUPE is Saskatchewan’s child care union, representing over 300 workers in the province and over 12,000 across Canada.