Some providers unsure about sustainability of Ontario's $10/day child care

Ottawa child-care operators say there are many issues that need to be addressed for $10-a-day service to be sustainable and meet the expectations of parents.

The deadline for operators to join the program was Tuesday. 

At Kids Kingdom in Orléans, the licensed private provider has decided to opt-in but is still approaching the new deal cautiously.

"There's no set contract to view unless we opt in to see the contract.… We want to see what that contract entails," manager Amanda Hart said.

"Everything has a little disclaimer on it that we're just not confident about."

Hart said parents have been told that until that contract is signed they won't be eligible for the 25 per cent refund on their daycare fees retroactive to April 1. 

The centre's management is concerned about how the government will fund the program long term and how much it might become involved in their operations, Hart said.

The $13.2 billion federal-provincial deal announced last March promised Ontario parents that retroactive rebate, and a further reduction of fees by another 25 per cent starting next year. It has the ultimate goal of $10-a-day fees by 2025.

Hart said her centre isn't eligible for provincial funding to meet wage floors for staff because they're already paid more than that minimum. She said the province hasn't offered benefit packages or other compensation.  

"It doesn't help us with retaining our staff. We have good quality staff but unfortunately if we can't pay them properly they're going to be out there living pay cheque to pay cheque. That's not fair," Hart said.

Wait-lists already long

Kim Hiscott, executive director of Andrew Fleck Children's Services, said non-profit daycare operators are more comfortable with the structure of the government funding plan.

She said that to deliver on the "generational change" the program could provide, the province needs to play a role in professionalizing the child-care sector.

"This is great for our current families but then we have already really long waiting lists.… We can't think about expansion until we solve our workforce crisis," Hiscott said.

She said that means higher wages, but also professional development and the opportunity for paid preparation time.

In a statement, the Ministry of Education said as of last week 86 per cent of licensed child-care operators had already "opted-in or signalled their intent to participate in the system."

According to a city memo issued Wednesday, 94 per cent of licensed child-care service provider sites in the city have opted in by the deadline. 

"Approximately 21,000 eligible children will benefit this year from a fee reduction of up to 25 per cent, retroactive to Friday, April 1, 2022," the memo reads. 

The city also said fees will drop further by 37 per cent in 2023 — to a floor of $12 per day — which will be an average of 50 per cent fee reduction based on 2020 average fees.

The City of Ottawa, responsible for licensed child care and early learning centres within the city, previously said on Sept. 9 fewer than a quarter of licensed providers had opted in.

In a statement Tuesday, the director of children's services said the city was focused on helping providers navigate the system and encouraging their enrolment right up to the deadline.

"Staff are currently focused on these efforts and will be providing a final total of participants later this week," said Jason Sabourin.