Libby Coker (Corangamite, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Early childhood educators hold one of the most important jobs in modern Australia. Each and every day, parents entrust their most cherished loved ones to these educators. In their care, children learn to connect and socialise in a safe, caring environment, develop skills in literacy and numeracy, and discover new ways to deal with the world around them. It is our early childhood educators who facilitate all these learning opportunities, guiding children to learn in a fun, safe and supportive environment. The benefits flow beyond our children. Our educators create opportunities for families. They create opportunities for parents to rejoin the workforce, care for an elderly parent or run a small business. They also give parents confidence and comfort that their children will receive the care, attention and quality education they need and deserve. That's why, day in, day out, early childhood educators and carers have our utmost respect, and it's why they deserve a pay rise.

The Wage Justice for Early Childhood Education and Care Workers (Special Account) Bill 2024 is about just that. It provides a 15 per cent pay rise for 200,000 early childhood educators and carers. This increase is also the result of strong advocacy from unions, dedicated workers and their families right across the country.

I want to take a moment to recognise some of the outstanding advocates from my own electorate of Corangamite, in Victoria—champions like Raelee Fechner, from the United Workers Union, who has been instrumental in this fight for many years. Your advocacy for better outcomes for early years educators has been invaluable, and it has helped make this pay rise a reality. For far too long, early childhood educators like Raelee and her colleagues from across the nation have been asking for a fair wage that reflects their skills and expertise.

The truth is that those voices were ignored by the former coalition government. But, despite these calls for better, fairer wages falling on deaf ears, they were continuing to raise their voices. But, now, the Albanese Labor government has listened. This is a victory for workers in a highly feminised sector, and I'm incredibly proud to be part of a government that made this pay rise possible. It is a pay rise that will change lives. It will open the door to possibilities that so many early childhood educators and their families may have considered impossible.

In my electorate, I know that many of these workers were considering leaving the sector, and this is not because they wanted to but because they simply couldn't afford to work in the sector they love. It was something that I heard often, but these workers are so passionate. These early years educators want a decent pay packet, and it is a challenge for them. So it is a celebration that we are providing these early years educators with a substantial pay rise.

As a direct result of this pay rise and the cost-of-living relief our government is rolling out across the board, from tax cuts to energy bill relief, these workers are recommitting to the sector, staying in much-needed jobs that deserve our respect. Just as our government hopes this pay rise will encourage more people to stay in the sector, we know it will encourage more people to become early childhood educators. It must be said that there are around 30,000 more early years educators working in the sector today than there were when we came to office. But we do need more, and a 15 per cent pay rise will certainly help to attract more educators to the profession.

So, to make this pay rise a reality, this bill sets up the Wage Justice for Early Childhood Education and Care Workers Special Account. This account will allow the Albanese government to deliver a 15 per cent pay rise over two years through the ECEC Worker Retention Payment Program. It means a typical early educator paid at the award rate will receive a pay rise of at least $103 a week in December of this year, increasing to at least $155 per week from next year. That's around $7,800 a year. For a typical early education childhood teacher, they'll receive an additional $166 a week from December this year, increasing to $249 from December of next year.

So, for early years educators who may be thinking, 'I love this job, but I can't afford to do it,' you can now embrace your job and earn more at the same time. For people who've left the job, perhaps you may reconsider and return to the job you love. Importantly, this wage increase will encourage more people to become early years educators.

We know early childhood care is a female dominated profession, and the Albanese government understands that, to build an economy that truly works for everyone, we must ensure it works for women. An economy that works for women must deliver wage parity. The Albanese government is committed to this goal. While we have made significant strides towards closing the gender pay gap, there is still much work to be done.

Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that we are on the right track, with Australia's national gender pay gap now reaching its lowest point on record. Since the Albanese government came to office, it's fallen from 14.1 per cent in May 2022 to 11.5 per cent today. That's no fluke. It's no coincidence. It's because our government has taken action to ban pay secrecy clauses, modernise the bargaining system, enforce transparent gender pay gap reporting and deliver pay rises for the aged-care sector. And now, with passage of this bill, we will ensure a pay rise for early childhood educators.

It's a move backed in across the board, with Ros Baxter, the chief executive officer of Australia's largest early education provider, Goodstart, stating:

We expect that [this] announcement will see qualified early learning educators return to our sector, while encouraging others to establish a career in early learning. This in turn will help make more quality child-care places available for families who need it.

Also speaking in support of this bill is Early Childhood Australia CEO Sam Page, who said:

This is a well overdue pay increase, and I am thrilled that the government has acknowledged the professionalism of our educators … Early childhood educators play a crucial role in the learning and development of young children, and this recognition is a significant step towards valuing their contributions appropriately

It is the point about recognition that gets to the heart of this pay rise. It is recognition of long hours at work; recognition of high piles of paperwork, often completed after hours; and recognition of the skills and expertise employed in educating our children—children of all abilities and capabilities. This legislation doesn't just deliver a pay rise for early educators; it delivers long-overdue respect.

It also lays the groundwork for a truly universal early childhood education system. The Productivity Commission said that, if we are going to build a universal early education system which makes early education and care affordable and available for more families, the first thing we need to do is deliver a much-needed pay rise to the workforce.

On top of all of this, Deputy Speaker, it also delivers cost-of-living relief for parents and carers at a time when so many are doing it tough. As a condition of funding the wage increase, early education and care centres will not be allowed to increase their fees by more than a set amount over the grant period, with that amount set at 4.4 per cent up until August of 2025. That's informed by the work of the ACCC, which has been doing so much work with the government to monitor providers and prevent them from unfairly raising fees. This condition will be set out in a legally enforceable agreement between the Department of Education and providers. We will also set a cap for the following 12 months based on the work that the ABS will do.

Capping fee increases provides certainty to families and will help keep a lid on fee growth. It also builds on our Cheaper Child Care reforms—reforms that have already resulted in cheaper child care for more than one million families. Under these reforms, a family on a combined income of $120,000 is now paying about $2,000 less in childcare fees, and that should be a source for celebration. As the Minister for Education has said, we need to reform our entire education system to make it better and fairer and to help more people finish school and go to TAFE or university. This journey starts with early childhood education. This pay rise is an investment not just for early-years educators and not just in individual families but in our national productivity.

In closing, I say to our 200,000 early childhood educators: thank you for the work you do and for your care, your compassion and your skilful dedication. But this game-changing reform doesn't just happen. It takes a visionary government—an Albanese government, a Labor government that understands the power of education as a catalyst to a better future, a better wage, better self-esteem and a better, more prosperous nation.

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