As of 2024, the starting wages for Registered Early Childhood Educators (RECEs) will rise to $23.86 per hour.
The announcement came from the provincial government on Thursday.
The wage increases are part of the Child Care Workforce Strategy and only apply to those who work in the Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care (CWELCC) system.
"Every day, Early Childhood Educators make a tremendous difference in the growth and development of children, which is why our government is unveiling the most comprehensive workforce strategy to recruit and retain child care workers," Ontario Minister of Education Stephen Lecce said. "By hiring more ECEs, our government will continue with our plan to keep reducing fees for parents and increasing access to affordable and safe child care for parents."
"We are encouraged that the strategy seeks to address some of the long-standing systemic challenges that contribute to attrition in the profession and the current workforce crisis in child care," said Beth Deazeley, the Registrar and CEO of College of Early Childhood Educators. "As the independent public-interest body responsible for registering and regulating RECEs in Ontario, we look forward to learning more about the details of the workforce strategy, and to supporting the successful implementation of the Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care Program in the interests of children and families across Ontario."
There are currently more than 5,500 licensed child care centres, 145 licensed home child care agencies, and around 473,000 licensed spaces for child care in Ontario.
Thursday's announcement builds on previous commitments the province has made to Ontario families under the CWELCC system. Those promises include a 50 per cent reduction, on average, in child care fees representing $6,000 to $10,000 in savings per child, the ongoing creation of 86,000 new licensed spaces, and support for parental choice in child care.
According to the province, investments from Ontario's government and the federal government in the child care and early years system for 2024 will total nearly $4 billion.