Federal, Manitoba governments announce boost to child-care funding, wages

Provincially funded child-care facilities in Manitoba will be getting a financial boost from the government in the months ahead.

Manitoba Early Childhood Learning Minister Nello Altomare and federal Families Minister Jenna Sudds made the joint announcement Tuesday that facilities will receive a five per cent bump in base operating grants.

That change comes alongside a 2.75 per cent increase to the wage grid for employees at those facilities, which came into effect Monday.

The boost to operating grants will be retroactively effective to April 1.

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“Our government knows we need to increase wages to make a career in childcare a valued, rewarding and well-paid profession and we will continue to make strides toward realizing that,” Altomare said in a statement.

“We know there is more work to be done. Our government will continue to work to improve the system with a particular focus on increasing wages and attracting professionals to the field.”

Tuesday’s announcement follows a similar one in May, in which the federal and provincial governments pledged an additional $10.9 million toward early childhood educators’ wages in 2024-25.

“Our $10 Canada-wide early learning and child-care system simply would not be possible without the hard-working and dedicated professional educators who care for and teach our children, day in and day out,” Sudds said.

“By recognizing and investing in high-quality educators we are ensuring the success of generations to come.”

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