Ontario child-care centres that aren't participating in the national $10-a-day program will soon lose provincial funding to offer new fee subsidies to lower-income families and their staff could see a pay cut of $2 an hour.
In a memo sent to licensed operators in Ontario outlining changes to how the province is funding the $10-a-day program, an assistant deputy minister of education wrote that starting in 2025, non-participating centres will no longer receive routine funding such as "general operating, fee subsidy or wage enhancement grants."
Families who already get fee subsidies for child care will continue to benefit until their child ages out or leaves their provider, the memo said, but any new families won't be able to access subsidies for kids aged five and under in centres outside the $10-a-day system.