Child Care News
Chase the funding, childcare staff told
The Australian - Patricia Karvelas - June 22, 2013PRIVATE childcare providers have revealed they have already lost staff to large operations such as Goodstart because workers have been told by the union that it is the only way they'll get government-funded pay rises. The news came as The Weekend Australian obtained a template...
Childcare centre cheats rob taxpayers of more than $1 million in fraudulent claims
Courier Mail - Renee Viellaris - June 22, 2013CHILDCARE centres have been caught creating phantom children to fraudulently claim taxpayer-funded subsidies. The cheats have created false attendance records, forged the signatures of parents and pressured parents to manipulate attendance logs. Seven people have been charged...
Early childhood diet linked to heart condition
Business Standard (UK) - June 20, 2013Researchers in Canada have observed that a child's diet at the age of three could determine its risk of heart disease as an adult. In a study, the researchers found that the effects of unhealthy eating commence at an early age, with the tell-tale signs of cholesterol noticeable in children aged...
Acquisition numbers add up for G8 Education
Financial Review - Sally Rose - June 19, 2013The share price of Queensland-based childcare provider G8 Education last week reached $2.52, its highest point since the company listed on the ASX in December 2007. The peak on June 11 followed company announcements it had acquired 17 childcare centres and would increase its dividend by...
Childcare wage rise bill a recruitment drive, says Coalition
The Australian - Patricia Karvelas - June 19, 2013THE Coalition has used its role in a Senate committee looking into the federal government's bill to give some childcare workers wage rises to argue for it to be dumped, calling it "a shallow attempt by the government to reward their union supporters". Labor have produced a report that...
Labor push for care bargaining
The Australian - Patricia Karvelas - June 18, 2013THE Gillard government has admitted it wants a dramatic expansion of enterprise bargaining in the childcare sector because it will lead to higher wages and conditions. The admission from School Education Minister Peter Garrett came as new figures revealed there were only 102 enterprise...
Mission Australia manifesto seeks 'radical' reform
The Australian - Patricia Karvelas - June 18, 2013"In terms of early childhood education and childcare, whichever side's in government post-September needs to have a serious think about the health and future of the system. Costs are spiralling out of control. Lack of affordability is driving parents to drop out of work and stay home...
Mass exodus of overworked kindergarten staff feared
The Advertiser - Callie Watson - June 16, 2013OVERWORKED kindergarten teachers and directors are considering leaving the industry in growing numbers, the state's education union says, amid calls for better support for early learning staff. Australian Education Union SA branch president Correna Haythorpe said Federal Government...
United Voice union wants child care workers to get $10 per hour pay rise
NEWS.com.au - Natasha Bita - June 15, 2013CHILDCARE workers are demanding taxpayers give them a $10 per hour pay rise - on top of the $300m wage increase just granted by the federal government. The United Voice union has declared it "will not rest until every educator receives at least $26 an hour or higher". And it wants...
G8 success lifts it to upper echelon
Gold Coast Bulletin - Jenny Rogers - June 14, 2013GOLD Coast-based childcare operator G8 Education has marked itself as a true Gold Coast success story being elevated to the ranks of the top 200 listed companies in Australia and admitted to the S&P ASX200. The company's market capitalisation this week also hit $669 million, giving it the...
Asbestos dumped near childcare centre
Daily Telegraph - Ian Walker - June 14, 2013ASBESTOS was illegally dumped on two roads in western Sydney just metres from a childcare centre early this morning. Sheets of the deadly material were found lying in the middle of the road on Wilson Avenue and Wilson Lane just off Canterbury Road in Belmore about 2.15am. The...
Morgan Stanley's Arena trust rises on trading debut
The Australian - Sarah Danckert - June 14, 2013The Australian understands that the original $75 million offer for the holder of a $228m portfolio of childcare centres was about six times oversubscribed. The stock is trading under the ticker code of ARF. Its entry came amid a minor sell-off in the property trust sector in recent weeks after the...
Education Minister Peter Garrett opens $3.6 million Christies Beach children's centre
The Advertiser - Sheradyn Holderhead - June 13, 2013A $3.6 million children's centre with a focus on Aboriginal families has been officially opened at Christies Beach. The Taikurrendi Children and Family Centre will deliver preschool, play group programs, parenting classes and early childhood health services. Federal school Education...
Childcare union warned off over wages recruitment
The Australian - Patricia Karvelas - June 13, 2013THE childcare workers union has been warned by the Employment Department not to tell workers they need to be members to be eligible for Labor's $300 million boost to wages in the sector. In a submission to a Senate inquiry, the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace...
Enterovirus outbreak prompts renewed focus on hygiene measures
The Australian - Sean Parnell - June 13, 2013PARENTS and childcare workers are being urged to promote thorough handwashing following the deaths of four children in an outbreak of the mysterious EV71 virus in southeastern Australia. Enterovirus 71 is more common in Asia and usually causes what is known as hand, foot and...
