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2004 Vote for Equality - Home
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Child
Care
A better choice for working Canadians
A growing number of today's working families are headed by women.
For the majority of families with two parents, the key to making ends
meet and earning a decent standard of living means both parents need
to work. What this means is that, more than ever before, women need
to work on an equal footing with men.
Central
to this equality is the need for affordable child care. Indeed, a
woman's equality in the workforce – to be able to work the same
jobs, the same hours, and have the same opportunities to earn a living
and support her family – will not be realized in the absence
of a national system of universally accessible, high quality, non-profit
child care to address the traditional responsibility women bear for
raising children.
Isn't
it only common sense that all children should have an equal chance
to develop and grow to their potential? Compelling evidence shows
that high-quality, non-profit child care enhances children's development
in every way
— intellectual, physical, linguistic, and emotional. It also
reduces the harmful effects of poverty. In other words,
good child care provides benefits that will last children a lifetime.
By
giving children this foundation, we put in place the foundation for
a healthy, prosperous society in the future. Every single Canadian
will reap those benefits. More importantly, as citizens, children
have the right to have all of their needs met during their growing
up years.
Child
care is so important to women that it was called ‘the ramp to
equality' in the 1984 Royal Commission on Equality of Employment because
it would provide equal access to work for women with children. Without
access to affordable care, women may not be able to work for a number
of years or may only be able to work part-time.
Women
bear the economic consequences of this — spells of poverty, reduced
earnings over a lifetime, inadequate pensions, and fewer opportunities
for career advancement, training, and education. These are the core
elements of women's inequality.
As
a result, many women in Canada need to work in order to keep themselves
and their families out of poverty. It is estimated that the number
of families with children who are poor would double if women in these
families did not work. The lack of affordable child care is nothing
but a poverty trap for women who are sole parents. Over 46% of these
women and children live in poverty in Canada.
Seventy
per cent of women with children under age twelve are in the workforce,
as are 64% of women with children under age six. Over 90% of women
return to work within one year of giving birth.
Clearly
women need child care. Regulated, non-profit child care is the only
guarantee of quality care, yet there are only enough licensed spaces
for 1 in 10 children needing care. Our children deserve better.
Many
European and Scandinavian countries have comprehensive policies to
support families with children, with child care at the centre. Access
to free or inexpensive public child care and early learning is the
norm, not the exception. These countries take social responsibility
very seriously, including women's equality and solidarity between
generations.
The
difference in Canada couldn't be clearer. Instead of a progressive
vision, Canadian women are told that having children is a personal
choice, and a private responsibility. Child care is regarded mainly
as a labour market tool to support low wage work. There
are still some dinosaurs who question whether mothers should work.
As
far back as 1993, the Liberals promised Canadians a national child
care program in their "red book" election platform. They
promised it would come as soon as the deficit was under control. But
after a decade, seven consecutive balanced budgets and billions of
dollars in surplus, we are still waiting.
The
federal government chose to break it's promise on child care. Yet,
since 1999, they chose to give away $10
billion in tax cuts to already profitable businesses – money
that could have been used to keep their promise.
You
can make a better choice.
When
you vote, don't listen to promises about child care. Choose
a candidate whose party is committed to national, non-profit
child care and whose party has a plan to make it happen.
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Source: http://betterchoice.ca/filemgmt_data/files/FACT2004-17-childcare.pdf
The
Canadian Labour Congress
has better ideas for you to think about before you vote.
Please visit www.betterchoice.ca.
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created May 23, 2004
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