National day of protest against low wages for childcare workers will shut down 70 Victorian centres, affecting 5000 children

VICTORIAN parents will need to make alternative arrangements for childcare on Wednesday as 70 centres shut down across the state in protest of low wages, affecting about 5000 children.

VICTORIAN parents will need to make alternative arrangements for childcare on Wednesday as 70 centres shut down across the state in protest of low wages.

The walkout, part of a national day of action, will affect about 5000 children in Victoria, twice as many as the last one in March.

Parents have been made aware if their centre is going to be closed.

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United Voice assistant national secretary Helen Gibbons said parents have been supportive of the action.

“They want to see early educators respected and valued just as much as early educators want a solution, and they’ve been great allies in this campaign,” she told the Herald Sun.

“They’ve willingly made arrangements to pick up their children early and many of them will join educators on the rally.”

Childcare workers protesting low wages in March. Picture: AAP

The walkout is the fourth in 18 months and will impact about 7000 centres nationally, with up to 40,000 parents being affected.

A protest will take place at 4pm Wednesday, with educators marching from Parliament Square to the State Library holding giant banners and drums.

Ms Gibbons said the government needed to invest extra money, instead of raising the cost of childcare.

Childcare workers protesting low wages in March. Picture: Luke Bowden

All educators were qualified and held trusted roles where they were responsible for educating young children at an important stage of their development, she said.

“The government thinks they can get away with doing it cheap as chips, but actually the people who are carrying this are the early educators, who are subsidising high-quality early learning with really appalling pay,” Ms Gibbons said.

The sector loses 37 per cent of staff in metropolitan areas, and 35 per cent in rural areas, each year because of pay issues, with some earning as little as $22 an hour.

Childcare workers will walk off the job again on Wednesday. Picture: Luke Bowden

Ms Gibbons said educators would strive to make their pay a federal election issue and did not rule out further walkouts and campaigns in the lead up.

“Educators are not giving up, they will continue right up until the election. They are determined to win this campaign because it’s not just about them and their capacity to pay their bills, it’s also about the future of the sector,” she said.

“They will have a long, strong and loud voice.”