To benefit us all: Childcare in Canada

Published in the Catalyst, Vol. 32, No. 1 - Winter 2009

In many industrialized countries, governments offer some form of assistance to families, helping with the cost of raising children. However, the extent to which this assistance meets the needs of families can vary significantly between countries.

In 2006, the Canadian federal government introduced the Universal Child Care Benefit (UCCB), which gives parents a cash transfer of $100 per month for each child under the age of six. While intended to help parents with the cost of childcare or other expenses, the UCCB falls short of meeting the needs of many Canadian families. The $100 per month is often too little to cover the cost of childcare, which is often as high as $1,200 per month per child.

It also does not address the current shortage of childcare spaces. Currently, only 12% of preschool aged children in Canada can access regulated childcare space.

Compared to other industrialized countries, Canada’s level of investment in childcare is dismal. A United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) report released last December compared early childhood services between 25 member countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. Canada was ranked last for its failure to provide adequate quality childcare.

Other nations, such as Sweden and Iceland, have found that high investments in childcare have a positive impact on families with small children, and have wider social and economic benefits. What might happen if our federal government were to do the same?

Benefitting Canada as a whole

A national childcare program based on the principles of quality, universality, accessibility and development could widely benefit Canadian families and the economy.

It could improve the economic security of women, help lift families out of poverty and stimulate the economy. Establishing childcare as an essential service would promote the common good by enabling families, particularly those with low incomes, to live with greater dignity and well-being.

Childcare has long been advocated as a means of improving women’s equality and economic security. Currently, women make up nearly half of Canada’s labour force, and millions of families rely on their salaries.

More women and children are living in poverty in Canada than men. The loss or illness of a spouse, divorce, or an inability to hold a full-time job due to caring responsibilities further increase a woman’s likelihood to become poor. Also, because of women’s traditional role as an unpaid family caregiver, they are more likely to be employed in contract, part-time and shift work, which generally offer lower salaries, fewer benefits, and less job security.

Childcare would address this inequality by helping women with some of their care-giving responsibilities. This could enable them to improve their economic security by engaging in the paid workforce to a greater extent if they so choose.

Accessible, affordable and quality childcare could also help lift families out of poverty. The high cost of childcare can leave single women with small children in a double-bind: if they go to work, most of their salary is taken up by childcare expenses. And if they do not, their only option is often social assistance, forcing them to raise their children in poverty. Thus, childcare is an important part of a poverty reduction strategy.

For parents who choose or need to rely on childcare, healthy and stimulating environments should be available for all children. This is important for child development, and could mitigate some of the disadvantage children from low-income or marginalized families face.

A national childcare program would also be a good economic investment. It would stimulate local economies by creating employment in childcare professions. It could also encourage families to have more children. Currently, Canada faces a low birthrate and an aging population, a combination that has the potential to decrease future economic growth. Encouraging our birthrate to rise now will help ensure that our population continues to grow and our economy remains sustainable.

A critical need

While many other industrialized countries have created national childcare programs, Canada has yet to do so. The existing uneven patchwork of policies, programs and funding sources provide little cohesion or accessibility for families. Childcare advocates in Canada have been urging the federal government to create a national childcare program for decades.

Currently, the only province that offers affordable childcare is Quebec. Since it was introduced in 1998, their childcare program has helped reduce child poverty by 50 per cent and engaged more women in the workforce.

With the exception of Quebec, a publicly-funded childcare program has not been established in Canada for several reasons. Many perceive childcare to be solely a private responsibility, negotiated between families and caregivers. And despite persistent and strong advocacy for childcare, a lack of political will also remains a stubborn barrier.

The need for childcare in Canada is critical, and will not disappear. The federal government has a crucial public justice role to play by promoting both the equality of women and the healthy growth of our children. Establishing a national childcare program would have long-term positive benefits, not only for women and children, but for Canada’s economy and society as a whole.