Cupe PEI - National Child Care Committee

Dear Honourable Members of Parliament,

A little over a week ago, a major study was released containing evidence that investing in the child care sector is the biggest job creator and provides one of the highest GDP impacts of all major sectors in Canada ($2.30 of economic output for every dollar that goes to programs). These are striking findings at a time of massive job losses and economic uncertainty (more...).

A major new study on the economics of early learning and child care provides important additional evidence of the benefits of investing in the sector. (more....)

CUPE and the Child Care Working Group contributed strategic advice on child care during the election contributing to the fact sheets web materials, polling questions, and other media on equality issues throughout the election.

We also participated on the Code Blue election team. This involved daily strategy sessions to keep child care as a campaign issue and maintaining a media presence. As part of Code Blue CUPE developed and coordinated actions at the community level involving CUPE activists and coalition partners. As a result child care did remain high on the radar during the election even with the issue of the economy taking such a dramatic role during the campaign. CUPE also contributed in-kind resources to Code Blue throughout the campaign.

CUPE plays a major role in Code Blue. This campaign is at a crossroads right now because the strategy must be re-focused in light of the election of the Harper government. There was a major meeting of 40 child care advocates in late September to discuss the federal election and the future of Code Blue. It will be a major challenge to keep child care on the agenda during the tenure of this government. Funding has been stripped from women’s advocacy including child care. The Child Care Advocacy Association of Canada has staff only one half day a week and no office.
Privatization
Privatization becomes a large threat to child care with a government focused on market solutions. The child care working group has been working with the CUPE privatization team to develop a major campaign on child care involving developing new materials, and a town hall tour featuring Martha Friendly and Susan Prentice, two child care experts who will have had a new book published in April.
We also have been working with Martha Friendly from the Child Care Resource and Research unit to investigate a P3 scheme for child care. Many provinces have been approached by a corporation called Educare to seek interest in this scheme. Preliminary research has been initially effective in dampening interest but the major campaign is needed.
Child care policies at CUPE functions

We reviewed the draft outline of a manual to help CUPE provide child care at CUPE functions. We also reviewed the child care provision and reimbursement policies of each division. Two members of the Child Care Working Group will work with two members of the Women’s Committee and one member from the Young Workers Group Committee to develop recommendations that can go to the National Executive Board before the next convention for a policy that can help CUPE National and the divisions.

Daria Ivanochko gave an overview of organizing to the working group. In 2006 we organized 19 locals with 422 members from British Columbia, Ontario and Nova Scotia. She along with the members from these provinces discussed the current priorities in British Columbia, Ontario and Nova Scotia. We noted the challenges around providing support for these locals once organized.

Margot Young, Staff Advisor, Equality Branch
on behalf of Jamie Kass and Sandra Harding, Co-chairs

(Source Cupe.ca) The child care multinational that was trying to expand into Canada has collapsed. But the fight to protect Canada from privatized early learning and care services is not over. (more)

CUPE continues to be active in Code Blue. Deborah Brennan had a very successful two-week cross-Canada speaking tour to share the lessons about corporate control of child care. Brennan, a professor of Social Policy at the University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia, has published widely on child care policy. (more...)

Multinational child care comes to Canada: Questions and answers for CUPE members

Please read the following articles on "Big Box" Corporations and their interest in Canadian services such a child care.

Cupe National has recently posted some photos of the Canadian Child Care Federation Conference from June 2007. Click here to view.

Cupe National has some interesting articles on child care issues facing Canadians. Please visit their child care section for more details.

A year ago, just minutes after he'd been sworn in as prime minister, Stephen Harper cancelled the federal-provincial agreements that were the foundation for a cross-Canada child-care system. At the time, Harper said the Conservatives had their own plans for early learning and care. A year later, Harper hasn't made the grade. According to a new report card from the Code Blue for Child Care Coalition, Harper gets a failing grade for not delivering a universal child-care plan that helps parents balance work and family, and for going back on his word about honouring the agreements. Far from improving access, Harper has cut child-care funding and hasn't delivered promised new spaces. And the taxable $100-a-month cheques don't provide choice to parents who can't find a child care spot or afford the fees. In the school system, a pupil who consistently fails has to be held back. Based on Harper's record, Canadian parents have the same option come >election time. I have made my comments on Harper's report card at www.buildchildcare.ca and I encourage others to comment on his record on early learning and care.

A Child Care Program is needed on PEI for numberous reasons! I have worked in the education system in an elementary atmosphere for the past 14 years, I have seen and continue to see the positive effects of Ealry Childhood Programs on children entering the school system. Children who have had the experiences of an Early Childhood Program show confidence and are well prepared socially and emotionally to enter school. A jump start in an Early Childhood Program makes for a positive beginning in school and a postive beginning leads to many successes! As a mother I had the privledge of having my daughter taken care of on a daily basis at home by her grandmother! At the age of three I enrolled my daughter into a local play school program to prepare her for the fast approaching school years. She attended play school for two years at age 3 and 4 before entering Kindergarten at age 5. The reasons I chose to send my daugter to playschool and Kindergarten were not because I had to, it was to prepare her to enter the school system socially, intellectually, and emotionally. It is a wonderful thing to have the opprotunity to have the option of you child being taken care of by a family member, it gives you peace of mind knowing your childs every need is being met! Along with the pros comes some cons, a child may recieve all the love and attention that a mother could want but what about the social skills to play and learn with other children? These are skills that are essential to being successfull in a large populated atmosphere, like the school system. Not only do you have to be socially prepared, but emotionally, to have the skills to deal the seperation of family members, the confidence to be able to problem solve and make choices independently. We cannot always be there to make the right choices or solve all the problems for our children, so they have to learn the skills to make make their own choices and solve problems independently. I was forunate enough to have the best of both worlds, the beginning years my daugther cared for by the next best thing to her mother and Child Care Programs that provided skills that my daughter will take with her through life and build on daily. The unfortunate thing about Child Care Programs on PEI is we need more, they have to be affordable and accessible to families. When I enrolled my duahter into a playschool program I was fortunate I done it early! In order to get my child in an adequate Kindergarten Program I registered her at the age of 2! That is three years prior to her attending and I was the second last seat for that class for her Kindergarten year! I feel every child is entitled to a good start in life, An Early Childhood Program is a step in the right direction!