Fiona Phillips (Gilmore, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) recognises:

(a) the vital role early childhood education and care (ECEC) educators and teachers play in supporting young children's early learning and development;

(b) properly valuing and recognising the ECEC profession—including through fair wages—is critical to reversing attrition and growing the workforce;

(c) paying ECEC workers fairly is a crucial step in charting the course to a truly universal ECEC system; and

(d) the Government's historic announcement for a two-year, 15 per cent ECEC worker retention payment for ECEC workers, phased in from December 2024;

(2) notes that:

(a) one year on, the Government's cheaper child care reforms are delivering real cost of living relief to household budgets;

(b) the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's child care inquiry found that out-of-pocket costs dropped 11 per cent following the introduction of the Government's cheaper child care measures; and

(c) the Government's ECEC worker retention payment will be tied to a commitment from early learning services to limit fee increases to 4.4 per cent, an important condition that will keep downward pressure on fees for Australian families; and

(3) acknowledges that:

(a) since the election, there are 860 more ECEC services, around 68,000 more children in ECEC, and around 30,000 more ECEC workers; and

(b) between 2018 and 2022, fees under the previous Government increased by 22.8 per cent compared to the OECD adjusted average of 6.2 per cent.

Meryl Swanson (Paterson, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second the motion and reserve my right to speak.

Fiona Phillips (Gilmore, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm really pleased to move this private member's motion today, because the wonderful, dedicated individuals that nurture our youngest citizens are some of the most vital workers in our country. Every day, parents trust early educators with the most important thing in their world: their children. Every day, Australia asks early educators to do one of the most important jobs imaginable. They deserve our thanks, and they deserve to be paid properly. That's why I wholeheartedly welcome this government's decision to fund a 15 per cent pay rise for early childhood education and care workers.

Early educators are helping shape the youngest generation in my electorate of Gilmore. As a mum of four, I've seen firsthand over many years the significant work local early learning centres do to nurture and create better, smarter and more capable Australians. As it happens, when the 15 per cent pay rise was announced by this government on 9 August during Early Learning Matters Week, I was visiting ECTARC The Basin Early Education and Care Service, which provides care for children from two to school age at Sanctuary Point. I sat down with the educators and the children and could feel the love, passion and special connection the educators have with the youngsters in their care. It was very easy to see the wide variety of educational and fun activities that the children were working on, which they got me to help them with. I particularly liked the large soft dice that one of the children threw, and then we posed similarly to what it landed on. Yes, we both did the warrior pose and more. I loved sitting in a circle with the children and educators and, together, we sang. There was art, groovy coloured sand and outdoor activities. These amazing educators deserve recognition for the hard work and commitment they put in every day. But they deserve much more than recognition; they deserve to be paid fairly. The staff at ECTARC The Basin Education and Care Service were thrilled when I shared the good news for workers, families and children during my visit.

In regional areas like Gilmore, attracting workers into the early education sector can be tough, and young staff often leave the industry because of low pay. This government is looking after them. We are getting wages moving, which will attract and retain our early childhood education workforce. For a typical worker, the 15 per cent pay rise will mean they will receive at least $103 more in their pay packet each week from December 2024, increasing to at least $155 per week from December 2025.

While we are investing in our early learning educators, it is important to reiterate that the Albanese government is also keeping costs down and easing cost-of-living pressures for families by limiting fee increases at childcare centres. Childcare centres will not be permitted to increase their fees by more than 4.4 per cent over the next 12 months, which means, while wages are increasing for workers, downward pressure will be placed on fees for families. That's a massive win-win.

This is a $3.6 billion investment. This is a two-year commitment while the Fair Work Commission looks at the work value case which is taking place. The Productivity Commission inquiry has shown that, unless we do something about wages in this sector, we won't have a workforce. You shouldn't earn more stacking supermarket shelves than you do looking after our youngest Australians in such fantastic way. So this is a really important commitment that we are making.

This significant wage increase is a wonderful outcome for a highly feminised work force that has for far too long been neglected and taken for granted. Early childhood educators shape lives and change lives. We can never thank them enough for what they do, but we can make sure they are properly valued and fairly paid. Our government is doing just that.

Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party, Shadow Minister for International Development and the Pacific) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I reckon they would be listening with interest in Gerringong, Nowra, Shellharbour, Ulladulla and Burrill at the moment to the member's contribution, putting forward this motion about childhood education and care educators. Yes, we want the best for those people who work in that sector. But two words that the member for Gilmore, a regional member, did not mention are 'accessibility' and 'availability'. One of the greatest concerns for parents and families in country areas is actually being able to have an early childhood learning centre and have that care provided in a regional setting. It's simply not good enough just to talk about wage rises for early childhood educators and mention all of those things without mentioning accessibility and availability. I know in my Riverina electorate we have a being void created by a childhood centre closing in Lockhart at the moment. I know even in Wagga Wagga it's difficult to get places for families.

I had a great conversation with Nicole Wishart recently. She is the director and nominated supervisor at Inspire Early Learning Centre on Kooringal Road. She wrote a lengthy letter to me and she said, 'When families are unenrolled, they suffer additional financial burdens due to increased costs associated with finding alternative care arrangements. This strain not only affects their financial stability but also impacts their ability to work and contribute to the economy. Furthermore, the lack of support services exacerbates workforce issues, creating a cycle of inefficiency and economic hardship.'

Now, I know Labor is out there addressing the wages and I am sure the member for Moncrieff will have more to say, because she understands very much our position and the position adopted by families right across this nation. What we are seeing, particularly in this area, is a lack of accessibility and availability. You very much don't hear that from those opposite, because they don't get the fact that there is a problem in those areas. If the member for Gilmore were to listen to her constituents, I am sure that's what they would say to her. It's accessibility and availability.

Yes, our childhood educators should be paid a fair day's work for a fair day's wage. There is no question about that. But it's about accessibility and availability in regional areas, which is the great concern. And why should our country families be disadvantaged? Why isn't the government doing more to help our regional families? It is because they don't care. In so many policy areas right across the board, we see every day of every week the fact that regional pleas and cries for services and amenities are just ignored. It's down to centres and placements. It's about Labor's lack of care for regional areas, and it's such a shame because families in regional centres are important too. During COVID and at any other given time, it is regional areas are leading the way through mining, through agriculture—

Government Members:

Government members interjecting—

Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party, Shadow Minister for International Development and the Pacific) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

and, yes, it's paying your wages as well. I didn't interrupt your member when she was talking, so don't interrupt me.

Mike Freelander (Macarthur, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The Member for Riverina: address your remarks through the speaker, please.

Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party, Shadow Minister for International Development and the Pacific) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You could tell them too to be quiet when I'm making a contribution.

Mike Freelander (Macarthur, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I've called them to order as well.

Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party, Shadow Minister for International Development and the Pacific) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I did not interrupt the member for Gilmore. I'm merely pointing out, with all due respect, through you, Deputy Chair, that there is a grave concern out there. It is being expressed across the board, and the government is doing very little, if anything, about it. It's about accessibility and it's about availability. Those two areas are being ignored. This motion put forward by a regional member, no less than the member for Gilmore, doesn't address this issue, and it should because it is a great concern. I'm sure it's a great concern for the members on the south coast because it is right across the board. I urge and encourage those members to get out there and listen to the mums and dads, particularly in regional areas, because this is of grave concern.

Meryl Swanson (Paterson, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I want to thank the very hardworking member for Gilmore for bringing forward this private member's motion talking about one of the most important things for any society. There are a few facts that we need to establish. I know you, Deputy Speaker Freelander, as a lifelong doctor, someone who has worked helping children as a paediatrician, someone who has had his own fair swag of kids—six, if I'm not mistaken—have made your contribution to our population! I thank you for that.

I know that people listening to this are hearing about early education and caring for children. Whether or not you've had children of your own, there is a principle: being a parent is both the best job and the hardest job in the world. It's not unlike being a politician, to be frank. It brings with it great joys but also great challenges. I do get somewhat concerned when people are averse to talking about the care of children alongside their education, because for me it is not just about educating young children; it is about their care as well because in that care comes a world of education.

In my seat of Paterson, I am blessed with some of the best early childhood educators and carers that money can buy, and let's face it: this is also about money. When you pay people well, you get a really good outcome. When you value the work that people do, you get a really good outcome. That is the message that this Albanese government is sending not only to early childhood carers and educators but to parents across Australia. We value the care and education of your children and we are prepared to pay for it. As a society I think most people would agree with that.

In my electorate I recently had a brilliant Saturday afternoon at a local park in Thornton called Wirraway Park when did a mobile office session there. The park was packed with parents and their small children, who were playing on equipment, with balls and going down slippery slides. It was wonderful. While I was there, two women visited me at my mobile office and I had the most incredible experience with them because they came to talk to me about their sector, which was early childhood care and education, and they were talking about the pay rise they were seeking. In the time they were speaking to me, no less than half a dozen children in that park came up to those two women and knew them, and it was just brilliant. The interaction they had with the children was such a powerful thing for me to witness.

I want to thank those two women—Christine Scott and her daughter Hannah—who work at the Community Kids Thornton Child Care and Early Education Centre for not only what they do every day going to work but for the light that they'd created in the lives of those young people who interacted with them and me at Wirraway Park that day. Christine and Hannah talked to me about the challenges and their lived experience in their industry. This is a female dominated sector, and despite the important role of child educators and carers in our society it is still a low-paying job. That can't continue, and as a government we've recognised that. For women around the country this is a real problem and that's why we're trying to deliver the best solution we can deliver at this point in time.

Our reforms to early childhood education are about recognising and growing this industry. We want more young people—whether they're women or young men—to be involved in early childhood education. It is vital. We are supporting centres to retain their staff and we're continuing to develop and strengthen recruitment and training pathways, which is so important. Our fee-free TAFE program has delivered a boost to the industry, with a Cert III in early childhood education and care being the most popular in the country. That speaks volumes about this.

I know a lot of people will say, 'But last time you did something with childcare costs they were just absorbed by the centres themselves.' We've now recognised that that can't happen again. As part of this agreement, we have said that the centres that are going to receive this uptick in funding can't put up their prices. That is so important as well.

Again, I want to say that we are doing absolutely everything that we can to not only attract people to this sector, but retain them by paying them well. We're going to continue to educate them well and we are going to continue to seek to improve the productivity of our country by getting more people to work because their children are in excellent education facilities.

Angie Bell (Moncrieff, Liberal National Party, Shadow Minister for Early Childhood Education) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

For the last 2½ years I've had the great honour to serve as the shadow minister for early childhood education. During that time, I've spent a lot of time travelling the country, speaking with educators, with children and with parents, oftentimes with children sitting on their knees when we meet. I've visited numerous early learning services and preschools. I've also visited many communities that have no services at all. It's about accessibility and affordability, as the good member for Riverina pointed out.

These communities are using whatever means possible to get care for their children, and in many cases that's informal care, so they can return to work and pay their bills. Unfortunately, this problem is only getting worse, so it is a bit rich of those opposite to continue to talk about their cheaper childcare policy and their plans for universal early learning when there are families all over our great country languishing without support.

Many children are starting school developmentally behind their peers because the government has conveniently forgotten about communities living in regional, rural and remote areas. The Albanese government invested $4.7 billion into childcare subsidies, most of which was eaten away by inflation—it just went up in smoke. It failed to deliver one single place for a child anywhere in regional Australia. That is the problem with Labor. They want to win votes. They don't care about delivering good policy, and that's something we've seen time and time again from this Albanese Labor government.

Just last week they announced a $3.6 billion wage subsidy for early childhood educators. Early childhood educators, carers and teachers do incredible work for our community—there's no doubt about that—and those on this side of the chamber also want to see them have better pay. But that isn't the issue. The issue is that real wages have declined by nine per cent and living standards have collapsed by eight per cent all because this Labor government can't stop spending. What that means for educators is that, come December, they'll find little extra money in their pockets because inflation is spiralling and they'll end up having to spend that extra money on all of those bills that are mounting and that just continue to go up and up.

With this announcement, of course, the devil is in the detail. Labor stood up at an early learning service and said a lot of nice things, but they didn't provide any real details. As the days pass, it becomes clear why they aren't giving answers: this Labor government didn't think any further than a nice, shiny headline. They're creating policy on the run, announcing funding and then saying, 'Don't worry about the details.' We've heard that many times from this Prime Minister and his ministers.

The biggest farce with this policy is that Labor think they can inject $3.6 billion into the sector and keep fees down using a cap. I know it's hard for those opposite to understand because none of them have ever run a business, let alone an economy, but, when your costs are higher than your income, you have to cut costs somewhere, and that's exactly what we're likely to see under this policy, because many of these providers continue to watch their electricity, gas and grocery bills soar, in part thanks to the economic mismanagement of this Labor government. In fact, there's a real chance that services already paying staff 10 or 15 per cent above the award wage won't sign onto this. They'll pay their staff a little bit more and then they'll just increase their prices anyway, and that will land in families' laps. Even if some services keep fees down this year and next year, families will still be hit with eye-watering bills when the government funding dries up because providers will then be forced to pick up the wages tab and to do that they will have to increase their fees. Families understand that, but the government doesn't seem to.

The sector tells me a 10 per cent wage increase usually means a seven per cent fee increase. But that's of course a post-election problem for this government, something that this Labor government doesn't want you to think about as we head to the polls in the next eight months. If they cared about the sector like they claim to, they could have announced this in their first budget. They could have kept their policy from the 2019 federal election, but they dumped it after they dumped that opposition leader too.

To make matters worse, we've been hearing about another dodgy union peddling lies amongst educators. Yes, the CFMEU isn't the only dodgy union. A union heavily involved in the early learning sector is back to its old tricks, telling educators they'll only get this pay rise if they are a member of the union. It's completely untrue, it's misleading and it's despicable behaviour from a union heavily associated with those opposite. I call on the Prime Minister to call them out.

Matt Burnell (Spence, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to support the motion moved by the good member for Gilmore. There are no two ways about it: early childhood education is one of the nation's most vitally important professions. It is so important that the educators and staff in the sector are paid appropriately for the crucial role that they play in the Australian story. Without these educators, without the hundreds and hundreds of hours that these workers put into the lives of our nation's future at the most important time of a child's development, Australia would be far, far worse off. It is an unimaginable scenario for our country to go without the efforts of workers in early childhood education, and that's why, for this Labor government, it's a priority to ensure that the sector can operate sustainably to benefit children, families and workers alike.

That's why these increases to the income of early childhood educators are so important. They saw a 4.6 per cent rise in 2022, a 5.75 per cent rise in 2023 and a 3.75 per cent rise in 2024. Now they are seeing a historic 15 per cent rise announced two weeks ago. These raises are changing lives, not just for the workers who are deservedly receiving them, who can now 'buy actual, proper groceries and not sausages and bread' to quote Bec, who is an early educator working just up the road from me in Hillbank, but for the children they educate every single day and for the families that these workers support through years of their lives. This is capping fee increases by providers to make sure that costs are not being passed on to families. This is helping early learning centres across the country retain their current staff, at a time when retention has been extremely difficult. And this is ensuring that these places of learning and growth are sustainable and continue helping children across the country to thrive.

The increase in income for educators and staff also makes it easier for the sector to attract new workers, to add to their capacity, to build on the more than 30,000 workers who have entered the sector since Labor came into government and to strengthen the backbone of early childhood development in this country, lightening the heavy load that has already been set upon educators in Australia. The 15 per cent pay increase that was announced a couple of weeks ago is not just a deserved one for early childhood workers, finally reflecting their important roles for families and children; it is also a needed one, to make sure the early childhood education sector can continue to guide our children in the most transformative stages of an Australian's life.

Don't just take it from me. Far more important are the voices of educators themselves. So I'd like to share the thoughts of workers in my electorate of Spence, coming into work at the Hillbank Community Children's Centre over and over again, and what these changes mean for workers in the sector. Janaya, Amanda, Bec, Misty, Kristina, Connie, Sarah and Courtney are just eight individuals who have been waiting for this pay rise. To them, this is recognition that their work is valued by Australia, for the monumental impact it has both now and for generations to come. As Connie put it, 'This pay rise means that I and every other educator feel valued and recognised for the work we do.' It's also vindication: receiving pay that finally reflects the effort that goes into their work, both in and outside of the centre. So often, these roles are not just nine-to-fives; there's also demanding preparation, before and after work hours. It's also about maintaining contact with families who are in vulnerable situations, to ensure that they and their children have adequate support. So, it's absolutely necessary to reflect the extra mile educators tend to go. As Kristina put it: 'This will help staff because they can afford to make ends meet. Many educators are working parents, so earning more means I can put my child into care and work better hours.'

So, to the Hillbank Community Children's Centre and all the workers in early childhood education and care in Spence and beyond: thank you. Your work is invaluable. And the story does not end there, because this is a Labor government that is continuing to work with educators across the sector, to guide policy that works for them, as well as the parents and children of our nation. That's because having better-off workers in early childhood education means having better education for our children and a better future for our country.

In closing, I'll just make a comment in relation to the words of the member for Riverina. We need to attract more educators to this sector. This pay rise goes to the exact heart of that. That is how we find a solution when it comes to a lack of educators and places in those childcare facilities. Thank you.

Aaron Violi (Casey, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It must be Monday in parliament: we've got the out-of-touch government patting themselves on the back, telling the Australian people how lucky they are and that they've never had it better, whether it's energy prices, whether it's cost of living and now child care—never had it better. Well, let's touch on that discussion around regional and rural areas. My community has a childcare desert, like the electorate of the member for Riverina.

What those opposite don't want to talk about is the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's childcare inquiry. They'll talk about the supposed drop in prices, which I'll get to, but none of them seem to have read the inquiry, because, when it comes to regional and rural areas and availability, the inquiry said:

Policy measures that continue to apply a 'one size fits all approach' across the sector will leave some communities under-served, unserved or without adequate and appropriate access to childcare services.

That's exactly what the member for Riverina was talking about, it's exactly what I'm talking about and it's what many in regional and rural Australia talk about: getting access, which is through supply. And as the inquiry said—which the government are happy to quote—a one-size-fits-all approach does not work. But it's not a surprise that this government forgets about regional, rural and periurban Australia. The Prime Minister went to that tough childcare desert of inner Marrickville—inner Sydney—to announce this policy, so we know that this policy is not going to help supply in communities.

In my community, there are 15 children for every spot. There are 15 kids and there's one spot. There are families that are putting themselves on wait lists at their 12-week scan. I thank Belinda and the team at Mums of the Hills for their continued advocacy and the work they've done. They shared that story with me and the shadow minister and many others. There are parents that are having to pay fees just to get onto wait lists.

And let's move to fees, because this motion is very much in the government's playbook of spinning and talking a big game. They quote the ACCC childcare inquiry, which found that out-of-pocket costs dropped 11 per cent following the introduction of the government's cheaper childcare measures. What they didn't quote and what they won't talk about is what else the inquiry said. It said:

Our inquiry finds that historically when subsidies increase, out-of-pocket expenses decline initially but then tend to revert to higher levels … Further to this, our inquiry finds that that the design and implementation of the Child Care Subsidy … has had only limited effectiveness in placing downward pressure on fees and constraining the burden on taxpayers.

This inquiry was in December 2023 and the government were very happy to quote it in August of 2024 in this motion, but what they didn't put in the motion is that childcare costs have increased by 8.4 per cent in the last six months—just like the inquiry said it would. This is why we've got a government that are all about spin and patting themselves on the back.

They also talk about the rent caps at 4.4 per cent. Let's ignore the fact that 4.4 per cent is well above the RBA's two-to-three-per-cent target, and talk about the hypocrisy of this Prime Minister and his inability to understand basic economics. This Prime Minister stands at the despatch box in question time when he gets a question from his friends in the Greens about rent caps and talks about how he can't implement rent caps because that's going to constrain investment in housing. But at the very same time, this government are prepared to put caps on gas prices, and they're now prepared to put caps on childcare places. So apparently a cap on housing and rents will constrain supply but a cap on gas and a cap on childcare prices won't constrain supply.

To be clear, I don't think we should have any price caps—we should actually be focused on driving costs down and treating the cause of inflation, like increased energy prices that have continued to go up under this government, not bandaid solutions. But for the Prime Minister to argue that caps won't work for rents but they will work for gas and they will work for childcare tells you he will say anything to anyone to stay in his job, or that he does not understand the basics of economics. The reality is, it's both.

Jerome Laxale (Bennelong, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The first five years of a child's life are pivotal not only for their education but also for their overall development. These early years shape who they will become, influencing everything from their academic success to their ability to contribute to society. Increasingly, our youngest are being taught in early childhood education centres across the country.

The work these early educators do is vital for our children and for our economy, and for decades these workers have been underpaid. We've changed that, and it took a Labor government to do it. In my time as the member for Bennelong I've had the privilege of meeting countless dedicated ECEC educators—one in particular, called Claire. Claire told me that she and her fellow educators love their jobs, but they often find themselves having to choose between their profession and basic necessities like putting food on the table or paying rent in a really tough housing market. This is not a choice anyone should have to make, especially not those who are entrusted with the education and care of our children.

Our government understands the transformative power of early childhood education, not just for our children but for our families, our communities and our economy. That's why we've taken real, concrete steps towards our goal of accessible, affordable and universal early childhood education. Firstly, we've implemented the $5 billion boost to the sector through our cheaper childcare reforms. These reforms are already making a difference, delivering genuine cost-of-living relief to over 1.2 million families across the country. We've seen out-of-pocket costs for centre based day care drop by 11 per cent, and it's also removed penalties on those who want to work an extra day or two.

But making child care and early education more affordable is only one part of the solution. We also needed to address the workforce shortage and retention issues that the sector has been facing for so long. Early childhood educators need more than thanks; they need better pay. That's why our government's announcement of a two-year 15 per cent ECEC worker retention payment, starting in December 2024, is so significant. This isn't just about boosting take-home pay; it's about retaining and attracting the dedicated educators we need to sustain and grow our ECEC sector. For too long, early childhood educators have been overworked and underpaid. We've heard stories of educators relying on food banks to feed their families or working two or three jobs just to make ends meet. That is simply unacceptable. These workers are helping to shape the next generation of Australians, and they deserve better.

The wage increase delivered by Labor will mean that a typical educator will receive an extra $103 per week, increasing to at least $155 per week from December 2025. For our early childhood teachers, that increase will be even more substantial: an additional $166 a week, going up to $249 a week in the same time. To ensure that this wage increase doesn't lead to unaffordable fee hikes for families, we've introduced important safeguards. Early learning services that want to access this funding will need to commit to limiting their fee increases to no more than 4.4 per cent, a measure which will keep downward pressure on fees and ensure that the benefits of our reforms are felt by both families and educators alike.

We're doing all of this because we have a vision for this sector. We think that early childhood education is good for families and good for the economy. This should not be contested. But, in the alternative reality that exists amongst the Liberals and Nationals, it is. You see, while we're investing in early childhood education, the Liberals are attacking it. Liberal Senator Gerard Rennick said only last week that our early educators infect our children with the 'woke mind virus' and that early education destroys the family unit. These views are horrible and may have had carriage in 1824, but we are in 2024.

While the Liberals attack workers and families who use early childhood education, we want to ensure that every family can access it. We want universal early childhood education, in the true Labor tradition of fairness and equality. Early childhood education is good for workers, it's good for families and it's good for our economy. It's good to help address the gender pay gap and increase workforce participation, and we'll support it every day.

Karen Andrews (McPherson, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There being no further speakers, the debate is adjourned and the resumption of the debate will be made in the order of the day for the next sitting.