Manitoba triples number of kids eligible for subsidized child-care spaces
'Today's announcement will allow more Manitoba families to participate in the labour market': Stefanson
Manitoba is expanding eligibility for its child-care subsidy program to reduce out-of-pocket fees for parents with children in regulated care by 30 per cent on average, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Premier Heather Stefanson said Thursday.
"Half a year ago, we said that parents in Manitoba would see their child-care fees cut in half by the end of 2022. We're well on our way to reaching that target," Trudeau said during a news conference, appearing virtually from Ottawa.
Manitoba is increasing its annual subsidy funding to $82.7 million, with $64.5 million coming from the federal government, to implement a new subsidy eligibility threshold.
The new eligibility, which applies to children 12 weeks to 12 years old, starts Sunday.
It will see the net household income threshold — and allowable deductions for the subsidy program — increased by 45 per cent. Households with an average net income of $23,883 to $37,116 will be eligible for a full subsidy, while the income threshold for a partial subsidy will range from $37,542 to $82,877, a news release said.
Of the 38,000 spaces available in the regulated child-care system, 6,000 children, or 16 per cent, currently receive a full or partial child-care subsidy.
It is estimated 12,000 more children will receive support with the new threshold, tripling the current number. Full details of the child-care subsidy, including applications and an eligibility estimator, can be found on the province's website.
"Today's announcement will allow more Manitoba families to participate in the labour market and maintain employment," Stefanson said.
In August, Manitoba signed on to the federal plan to provide child care at an average cost of $10 a day in regulated child-care spaces by March 2023.
Under the plan, the federal government promised to spend $1.2 billion to fund early learning and child care in Manitoba over the next five years.
"Today, we can announce that thousands of families will be saving money on child care earlier than planned," Trudeau said during Thursday's news conference.
The COVID-19 pandemic has increased costs for many people, so cutting child-care expenses will free up money for other priorities like groceries, gas "and what they need to get through winter," Trudeau said.
Access to child care will be a key element to post-pandemic growth and prosperity, Stefanson said.
"Our government, along with the federal government, is committed to ensuring working women and families have the supports they need to return to employment, attend training programs and return to the classroom," she said.
"No matter what path people choose, all of these choices need access to affordable child care if we are going to rebuild our economy."
Staffers feeling left out: Child Care Association
The announcement is great news, says Manitoba Child Care Association executive director Jodie Kehl, but without efforts to recruit and retain a strong child-care workforce through proper compensation, it will fall short.
"This is the first step, but we know that without a qualified, educated and adequately remunerated workforce, we cannot build a system," she said.
"It will not be transformational in our province until we ensure that there is that workforce strategy."
Kehl is banking on the federal and provincial governments agreeing to terms on a pool of money that will directly address the pay of early child-care workers. Ottawa had promised $420 million toward this effort nationwide.
More information on that will be released as soon as it is available, which should be soon, Manitoba Education and Early Childhood Learning Minister Wayne Ewasko said at the news conference.
Early childhood educators are key "to having a quality system that is doing right by families," Trudeau said.
Investing in staff is a core piece of the agreements signed with provincial and territorial governments as part of the federal plan last year, he said.
