EXCERPTS
Early childhood educators (ECEs) are in demand in Saskatchewan and expected to grow as the early learning and child care sectors continue to transform into an affordable, accessible, inclusive and quality system. ECEs play an important role in providing quality early learning programs in licensed child care settings. A career in early childhood education is a rewarding essential service to every community.
The Governments of Canada and Saskatchewan announced that through recent investments in the early learning and child care sector, more employment opportunities will become available for existing qualified ECEs as well as those who are becoming qualified.
“Whether it’s providing training opportunities or a salary increase, the Government of Saskatchewan is doing the work to attract more people to the childcare sector in the province,” Education Minister Dustin Duncan said. “Early childhood education is an important and rewarding career and there is no better place to pursue it than in Saskatchewan.”
These investments will provide residents with the right support needed to have a meaningful career in early childhood education, while also helping to meet the needs of Saskatchewan’s diverse population and providing an essential service to their community.
This news comes following the transformative investment to build a Canada-wide early learning and child care system in partnership with provincial, territorial and Indigenous partners. The goal is to bring fees for regulated child care down to $10 per day on average within the next five years. By the end of 2022, the aim is to reduce average fees for regulated early learning and child care by 50 per cent to make it more affordable for families. There is also a one-time investment in 2021-2022 to support the early childhood workforce in Saskatchewan.
A qualified ECE will receive:
● Accelerated training opportunities through Collège Mathieu, Saskatchewan Polytechnic and the Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technologies;
● Increased compensation up to $3 per hour depending on ECE certification level; and
● Playing an important role in supporting a child’s emotional, social, physical and intellectual development.
As part of the Canada-Saskatchewan Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement, there is a commitment to increase licensed child care spaces by 28,000 by 2025-26, with an anticipation that more employment opportunities will become available as new spaces are allocated. More information on the space increases will be provided at a later date.