Ontario aims to address the shortage of Early Childhood Educators by increasing wages to $23.86 per hour.

Ontario is set to raise the minimum wage for early childhood educators in the majority of licensed child-care centers to $23.86 per hour next year—up from the initially planned increase to $20. This move is part of an effort to alleviate shortages that advocates argue are hindering the expansion of the national $10-a-day program.

Education Minister Stephen Lecce unveiled the child-care workforce strategy on Thursday, which includes the wage floor adjustment. The government asserts that this increase will elevate Ontario’s starting wages for Early Childhood Educators from one of the lowest in Canada to one of the highest.

Lecce stated that this adjustment will establish wage parity with early childhood educators employed in kindergarten classrooms.

Officials from the ministry have issued a warning that the province may face a shortage of 8,500 Early Childhood Educators (ECEs) by 2026, the year Ontario aspires to create 86,000 new spaces within the framework of the national child-care system.

While fees for families with children in 92 percent of licensed centers and home daycares have already been reduced by 50 percent through their participation in the program, further reductions are anticipated, with an aim to bring the average daily cost down to $10 by 2025.

Despite these measures, advocates argue that the shortages of ECEs are impeding the sector’s growth. Many centers find themselves compelled to close rooms due to insufficient staff, hindering their ability to expand. Various voices within the advocacy community have proposed wage floors ranging from $25 to $40 per hour as potential solutions to address this issue.

Government officials have indicated that the funding provided to centers participating in the program will include inflationary increases that can be utilized for staff wage hikes.

Historically, child-care centers have heavily relied on parent fees to finance their operations, including staff salaries. However, with the introduction of the $10-a-day program, these centers are restricted from increasing fees. Consequently, they have appealed to the province to fund salary increases for Early Childhood Educators (ECEs) as a strategy to attract and retain qualified personnel.

During workforce consultations, the YMCA informed the provincial government that, due to staffing shortages, none of its child-care facilities across the province are operating at their full licensed capacity. To achieve this, they estimate a need for nearly 3,000 additional staff, and expanding by 20 percent would necessitate an increase of almost 3,500 staff members.

According to Alana Powell, Executive Director of the Association of Early Childhood Educators of Ontario, the announcement represents a significant step in providing registered Early Childhood Educators (ECEs) with the chance to remain in the sector and experience professional growth.

“The wage enhancements to the wage floor that the ministry announced today aren’t perfect,” she said.

“It’s not quite far enough and it’s still inequitable, but it will make a really big impact for a lot of RECEs in Ontario, and so I think that that’s something that the community can really celebrate.”