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"This day of recognition is an important avenue to show our deepest respect and appreciation for the work that these dedicated child care and early educators do for our children." — James Clancy, NUPGE National President.
Ottawa (28 Oct. 2014) — On October 29, take a moment and celebrate Child Care Workerand Early Childhood Educator Appreciation Day! This year's theme is I Depend on Child Care, in recognition that we all, in one way or another, depend on child care to keep our communities working. And we depend on the hard work and professional skills of early childhood educators and child care staff for the high quality of care we rely on in Ontario.
Child care worker appreciation day continues to grow each year
In 2013, 130 municipalities proclaimed the day and over 20,000 child care workers and 300 child care centres celebrated the day. This year there has been considerable activity to raise the profile of child care workers and educators because the Child Care Worker Appreciation Day follows the municipal elections (October 27) in Ontario. Many child care supporters raised the issue of child care at debates and lobbied candidates to support increasing the number of public, affordable child care spaces in communities.
There is a need for public representatives, especially school trustees, to champion the issue of accessible child care. Over fifty per cent of Ontario's child care centres are located in schools in our communities. Trustees can play a strong role in setting the vision for the school boards and help make critical decisions about rent and collaboration for child care and after-school programs.
Municipal councillors can develop positive relationships with child care centres and advocate to the provincial and the federal government the need to ensure more affordable high-quality early learning and child care programs for children.
NUPGE supports universal, publicly funded early childhood education and care
"We have been working with our child care partners to advocate for a universal, publicly funded early childhood education and care program that provides good wages and working conditions for those who deliver this vital service through our All Together Now! campaign focused on the value of public services and tax fairness," said James Clancy, National President of the National Union of Public and General Employees.. "Our message is that an early childhood education and care program benefits our children, their parents and our economies."
"Affordable child care allows for families, and especially for single-income earners, to move out of poverty by being able to take advantage of opportunities to study and work knowing that their children are safe, happy, and getting the care they need to help them grow," said Clancy. "This day of recognition is an important avenue to show our deepest respect and appreciation for the work that these dedicated child care and early educators do for our children."
NUPGE
The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) is one of Canada's largest labour organizations with over 340,000 members. Our mission is to improve the lives of working families and to build a stronger Canada by ensuring our common wealth is used for the common good. NUPGE