I'm a retired machinist. I am a member of United Steelworkers Canada. I'm also the grandfather of six children, and I want to talk about child care.
The Steelworkers' Toronto Area Council is calling on the federal government for full direct funding of child care. It's calling for affordable fees geared to income, and it's talking about a national care program to greatly expand available spaces.
This is particularly urgent in Toronto, where there's a chronic shortage of child care facilities. I would say it's a crisis. Three years ago, one of our daughters, Kate, was blessed with twins. I say “blessed”, but when it comes to child care, it was actually a big misfortune. She and her partner ended up having to pay $2,500 a month, which is more than Kate takes home from her work at the Beer Store. It would make more financial sense for her to quit her job. The trouble is that she loves her work, and she wants the kids to have the benefit of early childhood education in a well-regulated environment.
They live at Keele and Rogers in Toronto. The only day care that they've been able to find with space for two children together is over at Spadina and Lawrence, which is 45 minutes away by public transit. That's a big problem.
I think this should be addressed.