Time to fill the Child Care Gap

TORONTO, Oct. 14, 2014 /CNW/ - YWCA Canada welcomes today's announcement from Opposition Leader Tom Mulcair of a plan for one million affordable child care spaces across the country.  Canada's oldest and largest women's multi-service organization has long advocated for a national child care system, including at recent pre-budget hearings of the House Standing Committee on Finance.

"We're playing catch up, as a country," says Paulette Senior, CEO of YWCA Canada. "Women with children are a fact of life in the workforce. Women are the majority of university graduates. Women still provide the majority of child care. This is smart policy. This advances women's equality. Affordable child care is the 21^st century equivalent of public education."

Affordable child care increases women's access to the workforce and decreases women's poverty. Between 1996, when low-cost child care was introduced in Quebec, and 2008, 69,700 mothers joined the workforce, the number of single mothers on social assistance dropped from 99,000 to 45,000 and the after-tax median income of single mothers rose by 81%.

"Economically, what's good for women is good for Canada," says Ann Decter, Director of Advocacy and Public Policy. "Affordable child care is good for women, children, and families. It raises GDP, reduces social assistance costs and improves life chances. Government failure to develop low-cost child care is gender bias on a dramatic scale. There's no net cost and the benefits are immense."

About YWCA Canada: YWCA Canada is the country's oldest and largest women's multi-service organization. Our 32 Member Associations serve women and girls in nine provinces and two territories. YWCA Canada is the nation's single largest provider of shelter to women and children fleeing violence, the second largest provider of childcare services, and an active member of the World YWCA. For more information visit www.ywcacanada.ca, find us on Twitter @YWCA_Canada or at www.facebook.com/ywcacanada. 

SOURCE: YWCA Canada

For further information: For an interview with: Paulette Senior, CEO, YWCA Canada, or Ann Decter, Director of Advocacy and Public Policy, contact Laura Tilley, Communications & Marketing Manager at 416.962.8881 ext. 233.

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http://www.ywcacanada.ca