SIPTU representatives are calling on childcare employers to restart pay talks after an unacceptable proposal for a rate of €13.65 per hour for qualified Early Years Educators was made at the Joint Labour Committee (JLC) yesterday (25th September). SIPTU Head of Strategic Organising, Darragh O’Connor, said: “SIPTU has consistently said that a minimum rate of €13.65 is unacceptable to our members and indeed to many employers. “Low pay in the profession has directly led to a major staffing crisis, which will only get worse if this rate of pay is introduced. According to official figures released by the Department of Children, 60% of childcare services reported extreme difficulties in recruiting staff in 2022. This is an increase of 11% from 2021 and is simply unsustainable.” He added: “We are again calling on the employers to restart pay talks at the JLC and agree a rate of pay that recognises and values these essential workers.” SIPTU Sector Organiser, Diane Jackson, said: “In Budget 2022, the Department of Children allocated €207 million to childcare providers to support a pay deal. The cost of implementing the 2022 pay rates was a small proportion of the money provided to employers, yet they are refusing to transfer this state investment to staff through further improvements in the minimum pay rates. It is absolutely intolerable."
SIPTU demands childcare employers go further on pay
