Whereas there is a chronic shortage of Early Childhood Educators ECEs across the province that impedes the ability of qualified workers to return to the workforce after a parental leave: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM lobby the provincial government to implement a standard fair wage, that reflects the current cost of living for ECEs in British Columbia to address the challenge of a lagging labour force in the child care sector; And be it further resolved that UBCM lobby the provincial Ministry of Advanced Education, Skills and Training to address the gender-biased systems that place an unequal requirement on entrants into the ECE profession in comparison to other sectors, particularly when compared with trades education.
Ministry of Children and Family Development Recognizing the critical value of Early Childhood Educators and continuing to work to help child care facilities recruit and retain high-quality front-line staff, the Province introduced the Early Care and Learning Recruitment and Retention Strategy. The ECE Wage Enhancement was part of this strategy to address low wages in the child care sector with a goal to lift providers to a living wage and recognize the important role they play in a childs development. All front-line Early Childhood Educators in licensed care facilities are eligible to receive a wage enhancement of 2 per hour as of April 1, 2020, which helps with recruiting new Early Childhood Educators and retaining experienced Early Childhood Educators already working in the sector. Since 2018, the Province has invested more than 51 million to provide over 13,000 early childhood educators with wage enhancements. Early Childhood Educator wages, and the quality of the child care system, remains a priority as the Province continues to implement the Child Care BC Plan. Another part of the strategy to address the shortage of Early Childhood Educators is by removing barriers to education. Almost 16 million has also been invested into more than 8,000 bursaries and workforce-development supports for students pursuing a career in child care over the last three years. An additional 5.2 million is available to Early Childhood Educator students for the 2020-21 academic year. The strategy to grow the number of Early Childhood Educator students is part of a three-year, 136-million investment to improve the quality of BCs child care system and recognize Early Childhood Educators for their important work. To further support Early Childhood Educators in their professional development, they can now access the BC Early Years Professional Development Hub. The ability to learn remotely will improve access to high quality learning opportunities for rural and remote professionals and those who cannot access traditional face-to-face courses. As the Province continues to work towards implementing the next phase of the Childcare BC Plan, further improvements to wages for the child care sector continues to be a priority, as reflected in Minister Chens mandate letter. This commitment is to further expand the successful Early Childhood Educators WE program to ensure that Early Childhood Educators are supported throughout BC. Links Early Care and Learning Recruitment and Retention Strategy: https:www2.gov.bc.caassetsgovfamily-and-social-supportschild-care6337ea… ECE Wage Enhancement: https:www2.gov.bc.cagovcontentfamily-social-supportscaring-for-young-ch… Child Care BC Plan: https:www.bcbudget.gov.bc.ca2018childcare2018ChildCareBC.pdf BC Early Years Professional Development Hub: https:bcearlyyearshub.ca Minister Chen Mandate Letter: https:news.gov.bc.cafilesMCFD-Chen-mandate.pdf