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Today the Governments of Saskatchewan and Canada announced $8.4 million in early learning and child care workforce enhancement grants to assist eligible child care centres and group family child care homes in recruiting and retaining staff, as well as an additional $1 million for a total of nearly $53 million to the Early Childhood Educator (ECE) wage enhancement grant. This change will provide a $1 an hour increase to the ECE wage enhancement grant maximums for all certification levels.
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The ECE wage enhancement grant, effective September 1, 2024, allows for a wage top-up for eligible, certified educators of up to $8.50 per hour. The grant has been increased four times since November 2021 in an effort to increase wages and equalize compensation based on training and education levels. There has been an overall increase to average ECE wages of 20 per cent from December 2021 to December 2023 and this increase is expected to help employers to keep ECE wages competitive.
This is the fourth early learning and child care workforce enhancement grant since the introduction of the Canada-Saskatchewan Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement. This workforce enhancement will provide $145 per child care space to support non-profit child care centre boards and group family child care providers with initiatives best suited for their needs, such as peer mentoring, pension plan contributions or long-service recognition.
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