Should Working mothers be given preference at childcare ?? rant and healthy debate :)

[briggsy's girl]

Child care, IMO, should be on a needs basis. first in first served is not appropriate.

there are many services that are based on needs, not who got in first - this is just another that should be based on needs. i don't think it's appropriate to have to anticipate changes in your circumstances. right now, i have no need for CC, so my DD isn't on any list. if something happened to DH tomorrow though, i would have a need to have her in care so that i can continue working. why should my not having her on a list ahead of my SIL (who uses after school care just because there is a place and her kids like going) prevent me from accessing a place i NEED?

it's not appropriate to assume first in means most 'deserving', most 'in need' of the places


but i do agree, i deal with people daily that cannot find a child care position as there aren't enough of them where they are needed...

i don't envy whoever it is that has to work out licensing etc for child care centres.

[sushee]

I agree that the unpaid work that SAHMs do is not valued enough. I agree that there should be more childcare places. But unlike a SAHM I didn't have the option of not putting my child in daycare. I'm all for mothers being able to get the break they deserve from their unpaid work - having raised for kids, I would have appreciated that too - but when it's boils down to getting childcare or not being able to work when you have to, I know what side I'm on. One has some semblance of a choice, the other doesn't.

Ironically though, I was on a waiting list for my cc for 12 months, and they finally offered me a place when I had not yet returned to work. I actually had to place my son there despite not wanting to because otherwise I would have lost the spot for when I did return to work in 6 months. It was only one day a week and I put him in for only half a day despite paying for a full day but the nonsensical nature of how they'd worked out 'need' never failed to make me smh in disbelief.

If Charlie was to arrive in Melbourne tomorrow and I had to suddenly look for daycare for him, I would hope that my situation would be considered more needful than a SAHM who might have the option of being more flexible. I don't assume that they don't need a break, but I'm not putting my child into childcare to have a break, it's to work, so I would hope that that would be weighted in my favour.