Ottawa, Sask. announce funds to retain and recruit early childhood educators

The provincial and federal governments teamed up Tuesday to announce a multi-million-dollar investment to recruit certified early childhood educators, and keep them working in Saskatchewan.

The funding – which adds up to $2.59 million – will come in the form of one-time grants, which will allow regulated child care centres and group family child care homes to recruit and keep more early childhood educators and group family child care assistants, the provincial government said in a statement Tuesday.

Regulated child care centres will receive $145 per regulated child care space for children up to age six, and can be used for things like one-time investments into benefits or pension funds, signing bonuses, or attendance at career fairs.

Education Minister Dustin Duncan said early childhood educators are a critical part of Saskatchewan’s education system, and the government is committed to supporting them.

“Saskatchewan ECEs are essential to providing quality early learning and support for our youngest learners, and these grants aim to help promote and attract more young people to the profession,” Duncan said in a statement.

In the same joint statement, Karina Gould, the federal minister of families, children and social development, said the grants offer a lot of options to help child care centres keep up with growing demand.

“As work is being done to expand the number of child care spaces, this grant helps ensure child care providers can continue to proide access to high-quality, affordable, flexible and inclusive early learning and child care across the province,” Gould said.

The grant funding comes as part of a larger joint initiative to implement a Canada-wide early learning and child care system, the provincial government noted. Last month, a $5.4-million investment was announced to increase wages for early childhood educators.