Federal Budget leaves families, early educators and services in limbo

National early education peak body Community Early Learning Australia has called for the Federal Government to commit to extending the Worker Retention Payment now, warning that families, services, educators and teachers are being left without certainty.

National early education peak body Community Early Learning Australia has called for the Federal Government to commit to extending the Worker Retention Payment now, warning that families, services, educators and teachers are being left without certainty.

Services have been left in limbo about federal funding for educators’ 15 per cent wage increase, which runs out in November 2026.

Community Early Learning Australia CEO Michele Carnegie said an extension should be a straightforward decision.

“An extension to the Worker Retention Payment should be a ‘no brainer’ for a government committed to delivering universal quality education and care,” Ms Carnegie said.

“Silence on the future of the Worker Retention Payment means families, services and educators will be left in limbo this Federal Budget.”

Decisions about fees are being made now. Without funding certainty:

• families won’t know what they’ll pay for early education
• services won’t know whether they’ll need to pass wage costs onto parents
• educators and teachers won’t know whether their wages will go backwards.

This government can’t afford to lose its hard-won progress made towards a universal quality system, gained from historic investment over the past three years.

The first tranche of the Worker Retention Payment has worked. It has delivered professional wages for more than 200,000 women educators and teachers, reduced vacancies and increased workforce retention in record time.

It has been the driving factor in improving quality and safety for children in early education, delivering stability in staff, without increasing fees for parents.

The Federal Government can’t afford to ignore early childhood education as an essential priority for families and the economy. More than 1.4 million children rely on early education and care every week. Early education fees are often the second largest family expense after housing.