Strengthening Women’s Equality through Childcare
By Mariel Angus | Monday, February 9th, 2009
While we are fortunate to live in a country in which freedom and equality are upheld as important values, there are members of many groups in Canada who continue to be denied the same opportunities as others because of discrimination on the basis of race, gender, or other characteristics.
Historically, women in Canada have experienced discrimination that has limited their ability to participate in society to the same extent as men. Even today, when women enjoy relative equality in comparison to many other countries around the world, gender inequalities still exist. On average, women earn less than men, experience greater economic insecurity, and take on an unequal share of household labour.
Government policies can help strengthen the status of women by offering opportunities for women to participate more fully in society. One such policy is childcare. Accessible, affordable, quality childcare can help promote women’s equality by assisting them with their domestic caring responsibilities and enabling them to engage in the paid workforce if they choose. It can strengthen their economic security, help them to live free from poverty and give them more choices in deciding how their children are cared for.
Gender inequality in Canada is particularly evident when the economic security of women is compared to that of men. In 2003, women working full-time, full-year had average earnings of 71% of what their male counterparts made. Women are more likely to work at contract or part-time jobs that provide less economic security. They are also more likely to live in poverty, particularly if they are single mothers.
One significant reason that women in Canada experience greater economic insecurity is because they carry an unequal share of family responsibilities, particularly related to childcare. While the majority of women in Canada are now employed in the workforce, women with children often carry a double load of paid work and family responsibilities.
In 2004, 70% of women whose youngest child was aged three to five were employed in the workforce. Women also spend an average of two hours a day more on household duties than their male counterparts.
This “double-duty” can limit women’s abilities to engage in the paid workforce to the same extent as men, which can lessen their lifetime earnings including pensionable earnings. A national childcare program could help women balance their caring responsibilities and paid work, allowing them to participate more fully in the wage economy if they choose and strengthen their economic security.
However, childcare in Canada is rarely accessible or affordable. Only 12% of preschool aged children have access to a regulated childcare space, and the cost for one child can average $800 a month or higher.
This can be a barrier for many women who wish to return to the workforce, particularly single mothers. It can further increase their financial insecurity and leave them with few options to care and provide for their children.
A number of other countries have seen the equality of women improve with the introduction of government childcare policies. Nations such as Sweden, France and Iceland have national programs offering accessible, affordable and publicly-funded childcare. Notably, these countries also have lower rates of child poverty than Canada and rank higher in gender equality.
While a national childcare program has long been recommended as a way of improving women’s equality in Canada, it has yet to be established.
However, the benefits of accessible childcare for women have been experienced in Quebec. In 1998, the province introduced a publicly-funded childcare program, which now serves over 70% of the province’s preschool aged children at the cost of $7 a day per child.
Since it began, Quebec has seen the percentage of women in the workforce and enrolled in post-secondary education become the highest in Canada. The child poverty rate in the province has also dropped by 50 percent in the past ten years. This is testament to the impact that the program has had on the ability of women to increase their incomes through participating in the paid workforce.
Gender equality can reflect how a society as a whole promotes the dignity of the individuals within it. While women in Canada have come a long way in realizing equality, many still face barriers today.
The government can play a role in helping women participate more fully in society by providing options such as child care that enable women to strengthen their equality and economic security.
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What do you mean the cost for one child "can be as high as $800 a month"? Some licensed daycare facilities charge upwards of $45 per day... that's close to $1000 a month.
Sandra Espinoza on Wednesday, February 11th, 2009
Its forcing women and children to the street here in BC because women just can't get daycare or register their children in schools in their neighborhoods because as all filled up. There is a law in BC that says a mom must be at work for two years before she is eligible for help as this does not matter if she has been a homemaker or whatever. Like even now women can not access daycare to find jobs or keep jobs and costs can be $1200 month in some areas as daycare hard to find. Its all that new immigration and no new schools or money for daycare. Women can't count on subsidy because as some are still waiting and its over six months and the more kids you have the higher the cost. I'm not sure how the Liberals can justify putting women and kids to the streets but then there is little concern from many in the province as BC receives a failing credit for it treatment of children for the 5th year in the row and I truly believe they see the abuses of children as something of little importance. I hear we just had another death last week. So I'm thinking as usual nothing will be done because its a province where human life has little importance especially if they are low income. Its the Olympics that counts.
Visitor on Thursday, February 12th, 2009
There is no equality as it stands and daycare can run up as much as $1200 and families are also finding it difficult to find schools with opening in their neighborhoods. Women and Children in BC find themselves on the streets because of their inability to access daycare as must have worked for two years before can receive any help even if you were a stay at home mom. And this is in hard economic times as many find themselves without jobs but unfortunately women and children are still forced to the streets. However I doubt much will change in BC as there has been no changes coming despite BC receiving the worst rating for its treatment of children 5 years in a row. Its almost makes you wonder why people write and talk about these issues as it goes on deaf ears. However its always reassuring when someone else seems to care.
Visitor on Thursday, February 12th, 2009
Sorry for posting twice but said it didn't go through so typed one up again. Women also need affordable homes along with daycare and it truly should be a human right to be given the opportunity to survive and grow and be citizens who make this province all that more a special place.
Visitor on Thursday, February 12th, 2009
I am a stay at home mother and resent it when people think equality comes when cheap daycare is provided for parents so they can go to work. What about a childs rights all parents know that the best most loving care given to a child is that given by their own parents. Why have children if you are not willing to give them everything you have --- yourself.I am a feminist and socialist, parents should be pushing for huge tax breaks for stay at home parents or income supplements to allow parents to stay home to raise their own children. The cost of going to work is that you have expenses.
Visitor on Friday, February 13th, 2009
I totally agree that staying at home to raise children is an important role for women (or men) and we need to value that role. However, many women do not have the luxury of being stay at home mothers, especially single mothers. And the "economics" of having children just keeps getting worse; you may be able to "afford" a baby this year, but the cost of housing and food and everything else just keeps going up, and wages are not going up so families are less well off. And if your husband gets laid off and finds a job that doesn't pay enough to cover the rent and food, then what do you do?
Single mothers are not given the option of staying home with their children and receiving welfare; they have to seek work as soon as their youngest turns three. They used to be able to receive support until their children turn 7, in recognition that being a parent is an important role. I do think we should be supporting women to stay home for the child's first 6 or 7 years.
No wonder fewer people are having children, and those that are having children are having fewer of them. However, if we do not support people to have children, we will have no one to take care of us in our old age: not just doctors, nurses, health care professionals, but people to do the work and pay the taxes. We need children as a society, and we need to value them and the role parents play in raising them.
Finally, child care workers are professionally trained. While they cannot take the place of loving parents, they are specialists in early child development, and children benefit from quality child care, especially if those children come from lower socio-economic families.
Please do not be so quick to judge women who may not have had the same choices you have. I am sure you would go to work if you and your husband could not put food on the table with a single salary.
Visitor on Saturday, February 14th, 2009
We are talking stay at home mom's in abusive domestic situations who try to escape the violence and of course what options are there when you make $6 dollars an hour and day care is $7. Also when who have lost their mates or find themselves divorced. And rents well no point going there but they are coming down for sure as BC is now the Gangster Capital of the World and house prices got to hit rock bottom as no one wants to live in a place where when your shopping for a loaf of bread you end up with a bullet in the head as 9 shooting in eleven days. And experts say we are number one in the world when it comes to having the most gangsters. American says we need hand guns and UK is blow away as children in BC receive the worst record for its abusive treatment of children and women 5 years in a row as young children are forced into prostitution to survive. And me I'm on a mission to ensure the rest of the world is aware that Children in BC along with mom's receive inhuman treatment as many are forced into prostitution to survive as children as young as 5 and 6 are becoming the norm. But then Vancouver also has kiddy stroll and its a real attraction as people from all over the world engage with sex with our children as its become quite the past time as Olympic players goes up on charges of child pornography. And another child dies.
Visitor on Saturday, February 14th, 2009
Your right about the staying at home and the cost of going to work especially when women have 2 or 3 children in daycare and it just doesn't pay. I was thinking of co ops as one idea as women have some control over the treatment of their children as they participate in the operations of their daycare. I remember a friend of mine a doctor, and friends of hers set out and set up their own school in a trailer sharing in the costs of hiring their teacher. Its a great idea especially now when its come down to life or death for women because if you can't work you can't eat and here in BC for some even when they work they still can't eat so if it can happen to these women it can happen to anyone as one just never knows for sure what the future holds as even the wealthy find their investments disappear. And breaks to stay at home for familes for sure as we need new approaches as times are changing and new ways at looking at things are needed although this is an old argument but if put into place it would be a positive change for families and their children futures.
Visitor on Saturday, February 14th, 2009
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