More than thirty years ago, the women’s movement put child care on the public agenda. And while there have been important successes along the way, it can get depressing for grandmothers like me to see so little political progress. Parent fees are too high, staff wages are too low, there are nowhere near enough spaces [...]
Entries Tagged as 'childcare'
Plan for $10 a day child care striking a chord with British Columbians
October 15th, 2012 · Rita Chudnovsky · Comments Off · Children & youth, Women
What will it take to bring smarter family policy to BC?
September 27th, 2010 · Iglika Ivanova · Comments Off · Children & youth, Transparency & accountability, Women
Did you know that the BC government has set a goal to reduce early childhood vulnerability to 15% by fiscal year 2015? You can hardly tell by their actions. BC did introduce full-day kindergarten in some communities this fall, but other than that the family policy front has been rather quiet lately. The latest childhood [...]
Tags: accountability·child poverty·childcare·children·families·family policy·poverty·role of government·Women
The catch-22 of low-income benefits that are phased out quickly
October 9th, 2009 · Iglika Ivanova · 8 Comments · Children & youth, Employment & labour, Housing & homelessness, Poverty, inequality & welfare, Provincial budget & finance, Taxes, Women
My friend Emily is a single mom. She works full time for a salary that keeps her and her child above the poverty line but doesn’t allow for much more. Her income is low enough that she qualifies for temporary relief from paying her student loans (which are massive even though she is yet to [...]
What should our government be spending money on?
September 16th, 2009 · Iglika Ivanova · Comments Off · Economy, Education, Environment, resources & sustainability, Provincial budget & finance, Taxes
One question that is missing from the public debate on deficits and debt is whether we’re getting the best bang for the stimulus buck. Even if we accept that it’s appropriate for governments to borrow and engage in deficit-financing during a recession, as I have argued here, we need to have a discussion about the [...]
Tags: budget·child poverty·childcare·children·debt·deficit·Olympics·public investment·recession·role of government
Doing the math on all-day-K
September 8th, 2009 · Iglika Ivanova · Comments Off · Education, Provincial budget & finance
Amid the corner-cutting exercise that was the September BC budget, there seemed to be a glimmer of hope: actual money was alloted for the expansion of kindergarten to full day. Could it be that the BC government has finally started to get it and is planning to heed its own report on childcare (as I’ve [...]
BC government should heed its own report on childcare
May 7th, 2009 · Iglika Ivanova · Comments Off · Children & youth, Economy, Employment & labour, Poverty, inequality & welfare, Women
Do you remember the 2008 Throne Speech in which the provincial government launched a feasibility study on providing full day kindergarten for 5 year-olds and extending full day preschool options to younger children as well? Here’s a refresher: A new Early Childhood Learning Agency will be established. It will assess the feasibility and costs of [...]
Tags: childcare·children·early childhood education·Early Childhood Learning Agency·kindergarten·teachers·Women
Why young children’s education and care are not priorities in this election
May 7th, 2009 · Iglika Ivanova · Comments Off · Children & youth, Economy, Education, Women
It seems clear that policy-makers in this province (and country, for that matter) are not prepared to invest in a quality early education and childcare system, despite the proven benefits for children. The reasons have got to be political, as the economic case for investing in early childhood education and care has already been made [...]
Tags: baby boomers·campaign·childcare·children·early childhood education·feminism·gender inequality·health promotion·intergenerational justice·Paul Kershaw·Paul Krugman·seniors·Women
BC's child care crisis IS an election issue
April 30th, 2009 · Rita Chudnovsky · 1 Comment · Children & youth, Economy
The provincial election is off and running, and once again families and communities know that childcare should be a high priority for every candidate in every riding. After eight years of failed policies, ad hoc decisions, and inadequate funding, B.C. childcare is in a crisis. Just ask any young family about their struggle to find [...]
My “Universal Child Care Benefit” has evaporated to a parallel universe
March 9th, 2009 · Seth Klein · Comments Off · Children & youth, Provincial budget & finance
I just got a letter from my daughter’s daycare that her monthly fees are going up again next month. They will now be $700. When she started at the daycare two and a half years ago, they were $600. So much for the Harper government’s much touted $100 per month child care benefit. Recall that [...]
IWD commitments on my wish list
March 5th, 2009 · Adrienne Montani · Comments Off · Children & youth, Employment & labour, Poverty, inequality & welfare, Women
With International Women’s Day on the horizon this weekend, I’m looking for some commitments. Women are over-represented in low-wage work. So which party in the upcoming election will commit to an investment in BC’s social capital through a living wage policy for the public sector, including public contractors? Stimulating the local economy and adding to [...]
Tags: childcare·children·living wage·Women
