Steve Georganas (Adelaide, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In the short time I have left, in continuation of what I was saying earlier before question time on this very important bill, I'll start where I left off. As I said, we need to respect the professionalisation of the early childhood workforce. After nearly a decade of neglect and inaction by the former Liberal government, changes are needed. That's what the Wage Justice for Early Childhood Education and Care Workers (Special Account) Bill 2024 is doing. It will ensure that we have a sustainable early childhood educator workforce, which is important to our nation. Early learning educators do a vital job, making it possible for millions of other Australians to do their jobs. But, most importantly, they're responsible for the education of our children—the next generation of Australians. I know that a supported and valued workforce is absolutely critical to making early childhood education and care more accessible and more affordable for all Australian families.

This bill demonstrates the government's absolute commitment to supporting wage increases in a historically undervalued, mainly female dominated care sector, and it complements recent workplace relations reforms through the secure jobs, better pay act. We know that early childhood educators do a very important job. They are some of the most important workers in our country. We entrust them with our children when they leave home for the first time and we entrust them with their care and education. We know that they deserve more than our thanks; they deserve to be paid properly.

Tony Pasin (Barker, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Infrastructure and Transport) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

With a couple of minutes before adjournment it might not surprise members to hear that I won't be able to conclude my contribution on the Wage Justice for Early Childhood Education and Care Workers (Special Account) Bill 2024. But I want to say that of course the coalition understands the importance of early childhood educators and of childcare workers, so this increase in their take-home pay is welcomed. However, this funding is slated to cease on 30 November 2026. It does beg the question, and I think it's an important question: what happens in year 3—that is, after 2026 and beyond? It's a very important question.

In my contribution I don't want to focus on the question of what childcare workers are paid or of what the government has done around subsidies for parents. Rather I want to focus on the childcare deserts that persist across our country. It might come as a bit of a surprise to some in the gallery that many parts of Australia don't enjoy child care and don't have the ability for parents to put children in child care. Much of my electorate is situated in those deserts. In fact, child care is delivered a half-day a fortnight out of the boot of a car in some of my locations. That's not good enough. I want to see the minister responsible for this important portfolio area focusing some of her attention on addressing the childcare deserts, because it doesn't matter how much you're prepared to pay a childcare worker or how much you subsidise parents if there are no places—

Debate interrupted.