Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú) | Oireachtas source

Today, thousands of early years education and childcare workers went on strike and protested outside the Dáil. They did this because their sector is being destroyed by the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman. He is literally closing down childcare services in this State. He actually said the strike was unwarranted. Is it not a bit rich for a Minister on a salary of €183,000 per year to tell providers and staff, many of whom are on salaries less than the minimum wage, that a strike is not necessary? Is it not a bit rich for him to tell workers who are going into personal debt to keep the businesses open that their strike is not necessary? The Minister is hammering the childcare sector, a sector led mostly by women and that mostly involves small family operators, mostly located in provincial towns and villages where there is no other option available. At the same time, he is boosting the coffers of the large multinational operators in the cities. He seems to be living in a parallel universe.

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