Explainer: Why are childcare providers protesting today? 

Members of the Federation of Early Childhood Providers are protesting outside the Dáil today, over a number of complex issues to do with how they are managed and compensated by the government.

According to members, one of the biggest issues is the government not funding the sector correctly, which they say affects different types of services differently.

Price increases and funding

The cost of living crisis has seen the price of everything increase, but some providers say funding has not risen in accordance with inflation so many services are no longer viable.

Others say the introduction of core funding left many smaller ECCE schools in rural areas worse off, with the scheme prioritising bigger services with longer hours. 

Some services felt they had no choice but to agree to the core funding as the higher capitation fee and programme support payments had been removed, but many are now backing out of it or planning to.

Anything above the ECCE scheme (which is 3 hours a day free of charge for parents) is regulated by the NCS scheme, which sees parents pay reduced rates according to a means-tested scheme, with the government paying the services the price difference.

Some providers say the majority of government investment is going towards making this more affordable to parents, but the funds they are giving providers is insufficient and they are not allowed to increase their rates in line with inflation, which makes their services less viable each year that fees are frozen but costs rise.

Providers argued that funding shouldn’t be done on a one-size-fits-all all basis, as different types of services have different needs, and currently providers get the same grant to pay a West Cork rent as a Dublin city rent.

Staffing

Members say the sector is having a staffing crisis, as qualified people are leaving the sector due to low wages, despite their employers wanting to pay them more. SIPTU is calling for an increase in wages, but the services cannot afford to pay them more and keep their businesses open.

Admin work

Concerns have also been raised about the volume of administration work with some saying there are huge amounts of admin work required to implement the government scheme, as they must now comply with three regulatory bodies. This admin work largely goes unpaid despite being a requirement.

Autonomy 

Some members say the introduction of core funding removed providers, many of whom poured a lot of their own money into their services, autonomy and control over their own businesses by bringing in new rules about how much to charge and how much to pay, and admin work required.

There has also been some frustration that providers are not classified as government employees despite having to implement government schemes, meaning they are not afforded the same benefits as government workers.