Ontario child-care centres not joining the $10-a-day national program will soon lose key funding, including subsidies for lower-income families.
Starting in 2025, the province will stop offering operational funding, fee subsidies, and wage enhancement grants to centres outside the program.
Families currently receiving fee subsidies will continue until their child ages out, but new families won’t have access to subsidies for kids under five outside the program. The Ministry of Education aims to redirect this money to the $10-a-day system.
Operators warn that without funding, some centres may raise fees or shut down, limiting child-care options for families. Staff at non-participating centres could also face a $2-an-hour wage cut.
The province is urging the federal government to lift a cap on for-profit providers to increase affordable child-care spaces. However, advocates worry that staff wage reductions will worsen Ontario’s child-care staffing crisis.