REGINA - Opposition New Democrats stood alongside childcare providers, parents and advocates on Monday in calling for the province to sign the extension of $10 a day childcare.
Opposition critic Joan Pratchler pointed out Saskatchewan was one of two provinces to not sign on to an extension of the deal with the federal government. Pratchler said this put “childcare and families and communities in a precarious uncertainty.”
“There's so much at stake right now if we don't get this signed,” Pratchler said. “Parents will face higher fees, childcare spaces will disappear, centres like Prairie Lily and others will have to close. Hundreds of jobs, especially in rural areas, will be lost, sending a chilling ripple effect through industries in our rural economies and our urban centres as well. This is a provincial powder keg, and I hear it ticking.”
Pratchler said the agreement “should have been signed weeks ago,” and said families “need certainty during an affordability crisis.”
“Don't leave money on the table. Get this deal signed. Save these jobs. Protect the public service. And set up our little ones for a bright future.”
Breanne Arnold, a teacher and a parent whose newest child has a cochlear implant, said that because of the $10 a day childcare, “life in general has been more affordable. I, as a woman, could return to the workforce to a career I worked so hard to have.”
“We are at a crucial point in time where they have the opportunity to sign an extension taking us to 2031 with affordable, accessible, inclusive childcare. At a time when things are so unsure politically, we need to be able to count on our elected representatives. I want to count on our elected representatives to put families in Saskatchewan and children first and to stand up and protect a program that means so much to so many.”Nicole Wall, an early childhood educator at Play and Discover Early Learning Centre, said a reliable, equitable funding model needed to happen.
“We still don't have a provincial wage grid. Beyond recent increases to wage enhancements, my colleagues and I had not received a wage increase in four years.”
Cara Werner, representing the Â鶹ÊÓƵeast Saskatchewan Directors Association, said they were needing “answers as to why the government hasn't signed a new federal child care agreement that would guarantee funding for the child care industry for the next five years.”
“Most of our centres run exclusively on grants. Between inflation and the rising demand of high quality child care, many centres are just trying to keep their doors open and their heads above water. Significant numbers of centres have posted deficits in the last fiscal year because they can't make ends meet.”
Luanne Furner, speaking for Prairie Playhouse Early Learning Centre, spoke of the need to bring child care into rural communities.
“And we're just about to open, and now we're really stuck here and facing this opportunity that we might not even be able to open anymore because we're not going to be able to afford to open our doors. And so then all the parents, all the jobs, the livelihood of rural Saskatchewan is really at stake here if this funding doesn't go through for us. And we'll be forced to close as well.”
Megan Moore, director of child care at the YWCA in Regina, spoke of the need for $10-a-day affordable child care.
“We have seen a significant increase in our wait lists. The YWCA operates five child care centers, four in the city and one rurally. We have approximately 300 families currently sitting on our active wait lists. This increase is a measure of need…We know that with our limited spots, we can't serve all families, but I do think it's important to note that this increase in wait lists is a clear indicator of the need for affordable child care in this province.”
In response to the NDP media availability, the Sask Party government issued their response in which they said the negotiation of an extention should include discussions on things such as inclusion of terms from other Provincial ELCC agreements, and flexibility to address before/after school programs.
“We remain ready to negotiate in good faith before the expiration of the current agreement on March 31, 2026,” the province stated.
