Mr. Darragh O'Connor:

I thank the Chair and members of the committee for inviting SIPTU to discuss the recommendations of the Citizens' Assembly. SIPTU is the union for early years professionals. We represent approximately 6,000 educators, lead educators and managers working in community and private services throughout Ireland.

I welcome the Citizens' Assembly's recommendations on early childhood education and care, specifically increasing State spending to 1% in order to move to a publicly funded, accessible and regulated model of quality with professional pay and conditions for workers. Ireland’s early childhood education and care system is marked by high fees for parents and low pay for workers. This is due to low levels of State funding and the market-based approach of delivery. The key challenge for the State is to reform the funding model so that increased government funding can achieve the policy objectives of quality, which means better pay, affordability and accessibility. The introduction of core funding from September 2022 is a significant development. It will address key structural issues and lay the foundation for further investment and reform.

High quality early childhood education and care has a positive impact on children's educational, cognitive, behavioural, and social outcomes.

However, high staff turnover undermines these benefits and is associated with lower quality services and poorer child outcomes. High staff turnover is driven by low pay in Ireland. A qualified early years educator with a QQI level 5 award earns just €11.57 per hour on average. A graduate lead educator, with QQI level 8 award, earns just €13.21 per hour on average. Research shows that 45% of early years professionals are actively seeking work in another employment, with low pay identified as being the main driving factor. It has also resulted in a staffing crisis for service providers. Some 91% indicated they were concerned that problems with recruiting and retaining staff would negatively impact the viability of their service. Simply put, low pay is undermining quality for children, the sustainability of services and leaving thousands, mostly women workers, in poverty.

At the same time, parents in Ireland are paying some of the highest fees in the European Union. Not only does this block women’s participation in all sectors of society, but it also undermines children’s rights to access early years education. A report by Frontier Economics found that free early years has a positive, and sometimes substantial, impact on women’s labour force participation, employment and increased hours. This is consistent with findings by other bodies, including the European Commission and OECD. According to the European Commission, average monthly fees are the highest in countries which rely on market mechanisms to supply early years. Currently, Ireland relies on a market mechanism to supply early years. Each provider must raise enough revenue, primarily from parents, to at least cover the expenditure and profit and surplus. This pits the goals of affordability and quality against each other. If a provider wants to attract qualified staff, and pay professional wages, they need to raise fees and this undermines affordability. If a provider wants to reduce fees to enhance affordability, they will need to reduce expenditure. As wages make up 70% of expenditure, this means having to constrain or reduce wages and working conditions, which undermines professionalisation. The current model of funding puts providers in an impossible situation as they cannot provide both affordability and professional salaries. This impacts negatively on the quality of care for children.

In September 2022, a new supply-side core funding scheme will be introduced with €172 million of new State investment. This will allow the State to effectively target spending on quality and affordability. For example, a pay agreement is currently being negotiated at the early years joint labour committee which will set legally binding rates of pay. This process will ensue that increased funding for pay will end up in workers' pockets, addressing the issue of high staff turnover. Access to core funding is also dependent on providers agreeing a fee freeze.

SIPTU welcomes the Government’s acceptance that it must play a role in the promotion of professional levels of pay in early years. Indeed, SIPTU advocates that Government take an additional step by assuming full responsibility for employee compensation. This would allow for an approximate 70% reduction in parental fees while ensuring the professionalisation of the sector.

In conclusion, a public service model of early should place the rights of children and the needs of families at its heart. We must also recognise the essential contribution of all early years professionals and providers to the provision of high-quality services that are accessible and affordable.