We've spent years telling early educators how much they matter. Warm words are easy. A wage that actually reflects the work has been the harder thing to deliver — and that's what this bill is about.

More than minding

Early educators don't just mind or look after kids. They teach them to talk, to share, to handle big feelings, to get themselves ready for school. They wipe the tears, treat the scraped knees, and mediate the occasional genuine crisis over who owns the plastic dinosaur — all while keeping every child safe and meeting the professional and regulatory standards the job demands. That's not minding. It's skilled work, and for too long the pay didn't come close to matching it.

Why I backed the bill

That's why I supported the Wage Justice for Early Childhood Education and Care Workers Bill 2026. It locks in higher wages for early educators for another two years, keeps protections in place so families aren't hit with steep fee increases, and ties Commonwealth funding more tightly to the safety of the children in care.

None of that is abstract to the parents in Moore juggling work and a childcare bill, or to the educators doing one of the most important jobs going for a wage that never reflected it.

It's already working

Here's the part that settles the argument. Since the 15 per cent pay rise was funded, there are around 20,000 more people working in the sector and vacancies have fallen by almost a third. Pay people properly for hard, important work and more of them want to do it — and stay. That isn't a surprise. It's how every other part of the workforce has always operated.

The fee protections matter just as much. A pay rise for educators isn't worth much to a family if it turns up as a fee hike at the front desk, so the bill caps how fast fees can climb at participating services.

What it comes down to

You can't pay the mortgage with a thank-you. Early educators have been thanked for years — told the work is wonderful, that the kids adore them. All true, and none of it turns up in a bank account. This bill puts something real behind the gratitude: fair pay for skilled people, affordable care for families, and better early education for Australian kids. That's worth backing.

-Tom