ASU supports child carers in “National Quality Framework Regulations” submission

PSI Australian affiliate the ASU recently made a submission to the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations exposure draft of the National Quality Framework. The National Quality Framework introduces new qualification requirements for child care workers, new staff/child ratios for child care centres and, critically for our members working in local government centres, seeks to introduce wide ranging regulatory responsibilities on individual providers, and some individual staff.

The ASU has welcomed the introduction of ratios and qualification requirements. The need for child care workers to have a qualification is recognition of the complex skills required in this profession. In order to transition to the new regulations, workers will need a range of support by government and employers:

• Workers will need paid study leave to facilitate their training towards a qualification. Employers will also need extra funding to backfill those staff on leave. Many ASU child care members have access to this industrial condition via their local government enterprise agreements, but it is not widely available in the child care industry.

• There needs to be recognition of prior learning and experience. Many workers have a wealth of experience in the child care industry but may not have a formal qualification. The new requirements should not disadvantage these workers.

• Training packages need to be flexible to allow people to undertake a Certificate III or Diploma qualification whilst remaining in the workforce.

• The ASU has also called for higher wages for child care workers. The new regulations recognise the complex skills requirements demanded of child care workers, but the salary paid to these workers does not. Furthermore, the new regulations require each staff member play an active role in compliance; this may mean added responsibility and liability for individual staff members. This should be reflected in remuneration levels.

Finally, the ASU has expressed concern about, and opposes, fines levied against individual staff for non-compliance. We recognise that individual providers must be accountable and should be held responsible for breaches of the regulations. However we question the wisdom, and fairness, of imposing fines on individual staff members of anywhere up to $2000 for breaches that may be out of their control. This is an unusual approach that, so far as we are aware, is not applied to similar professions such as teaching. The ASU believes current workplace disciplinary procedures set out in industrial instruments provide the appropriate disincentives and penalties for non-compliance with workplace procedures and government regulation.

ASU media www.asu.asn.au/media/localgovt/20110509_childcare.html

ASU submission www.asu.asn.au/data_man/submissions/asusub-childcare-nationalqualityframework2011-0418.pdf