Invest in child care now, not later

As businesses in Elmwood–Transcona and the economy reopen, parents have to make the difficult decision between going to work and taking care of their kids.

Finding quality, affordable child care was already hard. With the pandemic requiring physical distancing in schools and daycares, it has only gotten harder.

It is a challenge that especially puts pressure on women. Statistics Canada tells us women make up about half of Canada’s workforce but their participation in the workforce is at its lowest in 30 years.

Failing to find an answer to this public policy problem is not just an issue for women who want to pursue the rewards of a career. It poses a real financial threat to single-parent families and families that rely on two incomes to pay their bills.

It is also a problem for many employers who depend on the education, training and experience of parents who would like to work, but will have to stay home if they cannot secure appropriate child care for their kids during their workday.

In short, there is no economic recovery without universally affordable and readily available child care.

The provincial government’s approach to childcare has clearly shown what not to do. Threatening the funding of child-care centres while asking them to accommodate the needs of essential workers wasted time and energy on unnecessary stress.

We need more, not fewer, centre spaces, with trained staff, proper sanitization policies and funding to accommodate the additional staff and equipment required to make child care available during this pandemic.

New Democrats have long called for a national strategy for child care in Canada. The pandemic has made the need for such an approach irrefutable.

That’s why we have been calling for an immediate investment to stabilize the child-care sector.

Our most recent effort culminated on Aug. 12 when we presented a motion in Parliament for a $2-billion transfer to provinces and territories to support a safe return to school and child care in the fall.

The motion passed unanimously, but what we’ve learned through the pandemic is that getting a commitment is one thing; persistent follow up by the NDP is required to make sure the follow-through happens and people don’t fall through the cracks.

Northeast Winnipeg has struggled for years with a lower proportion of child-care spaces available relative to the need. The solution to that inequity is a national, properly funded strategy, built on the principle that everyone in Canada should be able to access quality, affordable child care.

To make a proper economic recovery, we can tolerate nothing less. The cost of failing to get our act together on child care will be far more in the long run than the cost of investing in a solution now.As businesses in Elmwood–Transcona and the economy reopen, parents have to make the difficult decision between going to work and taking care of their kids.Finding quality, affordable child care was already hard. With the pandemic requiring physical distancing in schools and daycares, it has only gotten harder.It is a challenge that especially puts pressure on women. Statistics Canada tells us women make up about half of Canada’s workforce but their participation in the workforce is at its lowest in 30 years.Failing to find an answer to this public policy problem is not just an issue for women who want to pursue the rewards of a career. It poses a real financial threat to single-parent families and families that rely on two incomes to pay their bills.It is also a problem for many employers who depend on the education, training and experience of parents who would like to work, but will have to stay home if they cannot secure appropriate child care for their kids during their workday.In short, there is no economic recovery without universally affordable and readily available child care.The provincial government’s approach to childcare has clearly shown what not to do. Threatening the funding of child-care centres while asking them to accommodate the needs of essential workers wasted time and energy on unnecessary stress.We need more, not fewer, centre spaces, with trained staff, proper sanitization policies and funding to accommodate the additional staff and equipment required to make child care available during this pandemic.New Democrats have long called for a national strategy for child care in Canada. The pandemic has made the need for such an approach irrefutable.That’s why we have been calling for an immediate investment to stabilize the child-care sector.Our most recent effort culminated on Aug. 12 when we presented a motion in Parliament for a $2-billion transfer to provinces and territories to support a safe return to school and child care in the fall.The motion passed unanimously, but what we’ve learned through the pandemic is that getting a commitment is one thing; persistent follow up by the NDP is required to make sure the follow-through happens and people don’t fall through the cracks.Northeast Winnipeg has struggled for years with a lower proportion of child-care spaces available relative to the need. The solution to that inequity is a national, properly funded strategy, built on the principle that everyone in Canada should be able to access quality, affordable child care.To make a proper economic recovery, we can tolerate nothing less. The cost of failing to get our act together on child care will be far more in the long run than the cost of investing in a solution now.