It's time to prove we care about our children
Letter by: STEPHANIE BECKER, Coquitlam
Vancouver Sun
June 23, 2008

I am a licensed early childhood educator and I work at an amazing learning centre ….About a year ago, a family came to us from Denmark looking for care for their two girls. Although they were amazed at the quality of care and education their children received here, as time went on they became disgusted by the lack of importance B.C. places on child care.

I have to agree. Here are some facts reported by the Childcare Advocacy Forum, an alliance of six provincial child care organizations:

- Since 2002, all Canadian provinces except B.C. invested additional funds to improve child care wages and benefits.

- In 2006, the median gross hourly wage for B.C.'s college-trained caregivers in child care centres was $12.58. Contrast this with $20.39, the average hourly wage of all B.C. workers 15 and up in the same year.

Why is the average truck driver or the UPS guy making twice what child care workers make?

I'll tell you why: It's because B.C. doesn't value child care as a profession.