Luke Gosling (Solomon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Early educators shape and change lives, and we can never thank them enough for what they do, but we can make sure that they are properly valued and fairly paid. I had the pleasure of visiting the Casuarina Childcare Centre and speaking with them about the Albanese government's funding of a 15 per cent wage increase for early childhood education and care workers. The boss of the centre is Alice Casimiro Branco, who's been working in the sector and working in the union for over 40 years. It was great to visit her and her hardworking staff and to thank them for all those who campaigned so hard to lift the low wages of workers and educators in this sector.

A typical ECEC educator who is paid at the award rate will receive a pay rise of at least $103 per week, increasing to at least $155 per week from December next year. But, importantly, this agreement will also keep fees down for families in Darwin and Palmerston in my electorate and around Australia. Our cheaper childcare policy has already delivered increased subsidies to local families, but this wage increase will be tied to a commitment from the centres themselves to limit their fee increases to no more than 4.4 per cent. This policy is also good for business, because we'll have more people who want to go back into business and into work able to do so.

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