“I have been working as an RECE in the field for over 15 years. I chose this field because I truly enjoy working with children. I was happy to get up and come to work everyday. A few months before the pandemic rocked our child care world (and the rest of the world), I started questioning my place in this field. Over the last couple of years, we as RECEs have been given more and more responsibilities, but continue to make next to nothing and go unrecognized as essential professionals. During the pandemic, I truly missed my role in the classroom and was looking forward to getting back to work.
Sadly, since returning I have experienced nothing but stress and anxiety in my role as centre supervisor. I spend all of my days reporting Serious Occurrences for children who have fallen ill or updating them as test results return. I don’t get to spend time in the classrooms enjoying the children anymore, instead I stress about how the centre is going to pay the bills each month – as the funding that the government is constantly bragging about STILL has NOT come through (and we have no idea when it will) and I worry about letting down my staff and families if we can’t continue on financially. I’m exhausted and some days I feel like everything I loved about this job has been taken away.
While I understand that these times are different, I also wonder if things will ever return to what I spent so much time learning about in school. I’m seriously at the end of a tethered rope and I don’t know how much longer I can hold on. RECEs deserve so much more recognition than we receive and I seriously hope that the government steps up and follows through on their promise of funding and assistance before it is too late for my centre and others out there like mine that are holding on by a thread.”
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This is the urgent need we are hearing across Ontario. Our child care programs need support now, and we need long-term, sustainable solutions. This means a publicly-funded, universal, accessible, affordable, inclusive child care system. The Federal government has stated their commitment, now the Ford government must work together with the federal government on this vital priority. Our collective voices highlight the urgent need for change and the value of early childhood education in Ontario. All children deserve it, all families deserve it, all educators deserve it. The time is now.
Share your story. Sign the petition. Rise up for child care. https://www.childcareontario.org/risingup