The Workforce Investments Required for Early Learning and Child Care System Building in Alberta: Wha

The following report, prepared by the Muttart Foundation, in partnership with the Association of Early Childhood Educators of Alberta (AECEA) and the Alberta Leaders’ Caucus within the Canadian Child Care Federation, presents the findings from focus group discussions with early childhood educators held in the fall of 2022. [...] In early October 2022, the Ministry of Children’s Services, drawing on the findings from the above consultations and surveys, announced new measures ‘to support the quality and professionalism of the child care workforce’.6 These measures included support for the recruitment, certification and retention of early childhood educators, including the expansion of wage top-ups; a commitment to develop. [...] The research partners specifically sought the input of early childhood educators on system building given both the central role educators play in the delivery of high-quality child care and the relatively limited opportunities available for them, to date, to share their thoughts and insights on the changes coming to regulated child care across the province. [...] There were three related discussions: first, an exploration of the current state of the workforce and the challenges facing early childhood educators; second, a consideration of the investments and measures required to increase the size and capacity of the workforce; and third, a discussion of early childhood educators’ knowledge and understanding of the Canada-Alberta Canada-Wide agreement and ho. [...] They expressed concerns about the increase of staff in senior roles with exemptions from certification requirements; the loss of the pools of qualified educators they previously relied on to provide relief or temporary support to staff teams; and the erosion of the quality of child care.