Carina Garland (Chisholm, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I want to thank the member for Gilmore for introducing this really important motion to the House. One of the great pleasures in this job is being able to visit our wonderful early learning centres in the electorate and meet some of our youngest citizens. I recently had the pleasure of joining the Prime Minister in Mount Waverly at an early childhood education centre, and I visited Glen Iris with Minister Anne Aly. It was truly a wonderful experience, learning from the children and seeing how they learn, and that their minds are being sharpened through play. It was great to read stories with the children and share in singing with them too.

Our government, of course, recognises the transformative benefits of early childhood education and care for children and families. I want to thank families, and I want to thank educators at this point too, for their incredible advocacy in pushing governments, like ours, to take steps to properly recognise and remunerate the work that gets done in the sector every day. We're working to build a universal early childhood education and care system that is accessible for all families, no matter their circumstances or background. We've already taken some critical first steps in this regard, including making early childhood education more affordable for over a million families through our cheaper child care reforms. Our government also recognises that early learning educators and teachers do a vital job, making it possible for millions of other Australians to do their jobs too and supporting young children's early learning and development.

As the Productivity Commission report has stated, we must prioritise the early learning workforce before any major reforms, and that's exactly why we have made a historic announcement of a 15 per cent wage increase for early childhood education workers. Since coming to government, the early childhood education and care sector has grown by more than 30,000 workers. That's because our government is working with the sector to develop and deliver practical solutions to retain staff, while continuing to develop and strengthen work recruitment and training pathways. We already have provided more university and fee-free TAFE places for early childhood education teachers. We have helped deliver a 4.6 per cent pay rise from July 2022, a 5.75 per cent pay rise from July 2023 and a 3.75 per cent pay rise from July of this year. We commissioned the ACCC and Productivity Commission inquiry into the early childhood education and care system.

We've also invested $72.4 million to support the skills and training of a quality and sustainable early childhood education and care sector. Our workforce package is helping to build skills and strengthen the supply of qualified early childhood education and care workers, including through supporting professional development opportunities and paid prac placements. This investment means high-quality early learning educators remain in the sector, and makes it easier for educators to progress their careers.

Don't just take my word for it. We have heard from educators right around the country. Lisa, who's an early childhood educator in New South Wales, has said: 'This is a monumental, history-making moment. This means I can stay in the job that I love and know that it's going to change a lot of lives, not just my own.' Here are some words from Karen, an early childhood educator in Queensland: 'The changes that the Albanese Labor government are bringing in mean that early childhood educators who've been relying on Foodbank to feed their families won't have to do that anymore, and those that worked two or three jobs just to make ends meet will be able to spend more time with their families.' Here are some words from Sia, an early childhood educator from my home state of Victoria: 'Instead of searching for a second job, this pay increase will help me now pay rent and put food on my table.'

The work that educators do is not just important for themselves—putting a roof over their head—but for our communities. It enables more parents to participate in the workforce. Of course, we know the first five years of a child's life are so vital to their learning, so this is setting up the youngest people in our communities with the very best start in life. I'm so pleased with the efforts of our government to recognise the importance of this sector.

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