I'm worried about a new male carer at daycare - I'd prefer only women

"I have a bad feeling," an anxious mum has shared in an Aussie Facebook group that lashed her so severely, she deleted the post.

Long gone are the days where most jobs are gendered; the carer/teaching industry is just one example.

But it seems some prejudices still remain, as one Melbourne mum has taken to an online parenting group to express her concern about the new man who's joined her daughter's daycare team.

"Am I the only one worried about this?" she begins in her divisive post (which Kidspot has seen); the most interesting part of which is the comments section.

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"Every child abuser at daycare is male"

The mum explained in her post that her daughter has always been happy and comfortable at daycare, but she's expecting that to change.

"My daughter loves all the women in her life, and she seems to be more comfortable with them as to be honest, her only real male contact is her dad. 

"So when I heard that a new carer was joining the team, and it was a young guy, alarm bells began ringing. I'd really prefer only women."

The mum added, "I asked the manager lots of questions about his background, and wanted to know his full name so I can look him up on Facebook. She seemed weird about my questions and asked me directly if I was worried about something?

"I sort of laughed and said well of course, every second abuse story in the news is about someone in daycare, or a teacher, or a sports coach. So of course, I'm going to have questions. I'm not trying to be sexist."

The mum said the manager's "attitude" didn't help reassure her because she simply said that they had used "the highest standard of vetting."

"The manager basically then said to relax and meet him first before you jump to conclusions. Do you think I'm being unfair?"

Mum concerned about male carer. Image: iStock

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"Blatant sexism"

The backlash to the woman's post was harsh and swift.

"You're not trying to be sexist, you are being sexist," wrote one group member.

"You know that women are sometimes sexual predators, too?" another noted.

Others shared their personal experiences.

"My daughter has had more male carers than female, and she adores every one of them," said a mum, while this parent added, "I don't even think twice about it."

This mum offered, "Both genders - or no gender - all different sorts of people have a very important role to play in raising a kid. That reflects society. My son has so much fun with the male carer at kindy and I am so grateful for him being there."

But not all responses were so kind, with many parents - including dads, lashing the woman for her gender bias.

"Are you living in 1923? Of course, it's ridiculous to assume that just because he's a man working with young children, he's looking to abuse them," an angry dad wrote.

And finally, this parent shared, "What an offensive prejudice. Did you question your own husband's motives when he told you he'd like to have kids? Do you never leave your daughter alone with him? 

"Because based on your terrible post, you need to think twice about him, too."

After many angry comments like this, the mum deleted her post.

Originally published as I'm worried about a new male carer at daycare - I'd prefer only women