Tammy Tyrrell (Tasmania, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

My question is for Senator Watt, representing the Minister for Education, regarding the Wage Justice for Early Childhood Education and Care Workers (Special Account) Bill 2024. If passed, there will be a wage increase for childcare professionals through a worker retention payment with a wage increase above the modern award rates over two years. Providers opt in by applying for the payment. The cut-off for application falls at the end of this month. Not every childcare centre will be applying for this grant, for a variety of reasons, but I'd like to know how many of the country's almost 9,000 childcare centres have so far applied for this grant.