A Cork TD has called on the Tánaiste to urgently provide paid leave for parents who must stay at home with a child who is self-isolating.
He also appealed for the Government to invest in the early years sector to guarantee accessible and affordable childcare while securing properly paid jobs for those working in the area.
This follows the publishing of the Early Years Staffing Survey Report 2021 which indicated that childcare facilities in Cork face closure in the coming months due to their inability to attract and retain staff.
Speaking to RedFM News, Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire said that the childcare sector works for neither parents nor staff:
"Accessing childcare, not to mind, affordable childcare is nigh on impossible in and around the city. But that could become even worse if many of the childcare providers that are now saying that they can barely afford to make ends meet, that they are not viable, end up reducing their services or closing altogether. The reality is is that the childcare sector is is completely unsustainable. It doesn't work for parents, it doesn't work for staff, wages are too low, fees are too high."
