Kate Bezanson, Associate Professor of Sociology and Associate Dean of Social Sciences at Brock University, Andrew Bevan, Executive Advisor to Mohamad Fakih and Chair of the Fakih Foundation, and Monica Lysack, Professor of Early Childhood Education at Sheridan College co-wrote a piece published in the Hamilton Spectator advocating for federal financial support to child-care providers that have been closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

They write:

“Even as the federal government continues to manage the massive health, social and economic challenges of COVID-19, it must act now to lay the policy groundwork to aid a broad and lasting Canadian recovery.

 This includes supporting child care like the national necessity it is.

 Right now, child-care centres for all but essential workers are shuttered across the country. Many centres which are closed cannot and cover their costs will not have the resilience to survive the shutdown and reopen once the crisis passes. If parents cannot find child care when they are able to return to work, this will slow Canada’s economic recovery.

 But it’s not just about the immediate term. Policy-makers should also use this period of social solidarity to establish essential foundations to our long-term social and economic well-being. This includes long-term measures to support and enhance child care services across the country.

 The coronavirus crisis has enhanced our collective understanding of what is essential. We pay greater attention now to the often-invisible work and tasks that go into maintaining people on a daily and a generational basis. Over the past few weeks, many parents have developed a new awareness of the dedication and creativity demanded of child care workers.”

 Continue reading the full article here.