Child Care Coalition of Manitoba

The YouTube channel of Child Care Now hosts numerous educational videos and webinar recordings. A recent series, part of a collaboration between university researchers and community partners is called "What's Next?", and have covered the childcare workforce, Indigneous early learning and cildcare, and affordability. These and other videos are a great way to learn more about what is happening nationally and across Canada. Visit: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCJQESw_5s8z2dWyig10mhw

The federal government's Bill C35, "An Act Respecting nearly Learning and Child Care in Canada"  has passed second reading and is now committee hearings with HUMA (the Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills, and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities Committee). First reading was completed December 8th, and second reading was completed February 1st. The HUMA committee invites written briefs (deadline is March 17th). You can see the order of reference, and all submissions on the bill, by visiting https://www.ourcommons.ca/Committees/en/HUMA/StudyActivity?studyActivityId=12022948

On November 30th, the Child Care Coalition of Manitoba in alliance with Child Care Now is holding a press confrence at the Manitoba Legislature at noon today. 

Across Canada, parents are seeing their childcare fees drop. But this is not happening in Manitoba. More than a year after the Manitoba government signed onto the federal government’s national child care agreement, families in Manitoba have not seen their childcare fees reduced.

Under the Canada-Manitoba Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement (2021-2026), Manitoba promised many changes. The first is “providing a 50% reduction in average parent fees in regulated ELCC by the end of 2022 and reaching an average of $10/day by fiscal year 2025/6 for all regulated child care spaces.”

All other provinces in Canada have seen child care fees go down as a result of provincial and federal governments partnering on affordability. Manitoba is the only province where child care fees have not been reduced at all.

“Manitoba needs an affordable and high-quality child care system,” said Susan Prentice, Duff Roblin Professor of Government at the University of Manitoba and a member of the Child Care Coalition of Manitoba. “Unfortunately, while every other province is moving to $10/day fees, here in Manitoba the provincial government has opted for a patchwork subsidy approach that only adds more paperwork and administrative burden for families and facilities.”

“When I first heard about the plan for $10-a-day child care, I was excited because lower fees would really help my family’s budget,” said Lori Isber, a parent and the chair of the Fort Rouge Child Care Centre. “But it has been over a year since the government promised to reduce child care fees and my fees are the same, all while the cost of everything else continues to go up.”

     Today, the Child Care Coaliton of Manitoba released a report card on the state of child care in Manitoba. The CCCM is  calling on the Manitoba government to take immediate action to create a universal child care system as recommended by the ‘Manitoba Early Learning and Child Care Commission Final Report (2016). The publicly-funded Commission Report maps out a policy framework to create 12,000 accessible, affordable, quality child care spaces in Manitoba with in five years and invest in the Early Learning and Child Care workforce.