DESPITE being more likely to recommend their employer, nearly half of early childhood education and care professionals would not advocate pursuing a career in the sector, according to new research from industry super fund HESTA.

Launched today, the State of the Sector 2021: Early Childhood Education and Care Workforce Insights report looking at the working experience and attitudes of HESTA members reveals the industry – already facing chronic workforce shortages – faces significant challenges attracting and retaining talent.

Almost one in five early childhood education and care (ECEC) professionals surveyed said they were considering leaving the industry within two years. Among the biggest issues were dissatisfaction with wages, feeling unappreciated by the community for their role as early educators, and a lack of opportunities for growth (promotion).

The research did find positive sentiment across a range of measures related to how ECEC professionals felt about their employers, with 87 percent saying they felt somewhat or strongly supported by their employers during COVID.

However, this did not flow through to a greater willingness to advocate for working in the sector. 

Although 42 percent of respondents said they would strongly recommend working for their employer, 43 percent were strong detractors when it came to recommending a career in the industry. Less than a third of respondents said they would strongly recommend a career in the industry.

“This research shows the big gap between how professionals feel about where they work and whether they see a long-term career in the industry,” HESTA CEO Debby Blakey said.

“It’s great to see individual employers stepping up and supporting their employees, but unless the broader issues of low pay, a lack of development opportunities and community perception are addressed, the industry will face a chronic shortage of skilled professionals.”

In a 2019 workforce report on the future of the ECEC workforce, the independent Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA) forecast the sector would need more than 39,000 extra educators by 2023 - a 20 percent increase in the workforce.

HESTA has more than 63,000 members working in the sector. As part of this workforce research project, HESTA surveyed professionals working across health and community services in May 2019 and in July 2020. More than 4600 members responded to the survey, including more than 360 ECEC professionals.

Questions looked at member’s job intentions, their employment satisfaction drivers, their attitudes towards their employer and industry, as well as how the COVID-19 pandemic affected their work, financial situation and industry outlook.

HESTA members working in ECEC had the lowest median super account balance of any industry cohort, with 74 percent having a median account balance of less than $50,000. Hit hard by the pandemic, nearly 20 percent of HESTA members working in ECEC also made a claim under the Federal Government’s early release of super (ERS) scheme. This group saw their median account balance fall by an average of 49 percent.

“During the pandemic we saw the critical role our early educators play in supporting our community," Ms Blakey said.

“We also saw just how precarious their employment and financial situation is. We know from the early release of super, the heartbreaking prevalence of financial hardship among these members and it points to the need to improve the quality and security of jobs in the sector.”

Over a third of respondents reported that their household income was less than $60,000 and almost one in five reported their household earned less than $40,000.

“HESTA strongly supports free universal childcare as a key productivity measure to improve women’s workforce participation and lifetime earning potential in order to lead to better outcomes for generations of Australian children,” Ms Blakey said.

“When Australia faced the initial shock of COVID-19, early educators were there to support the push to protect our community. Now is the time to ensure a long-term, sustainably funded, early childhood education sector. But this funding must also look to lift low wages and improve conditions for those who are so vital to delivering these critical services.”

The report is available at hesta.com.au/ECECreport21

KEY FINDINGS

• 47% of respondents would strongly recommend their leader or manager.
• 42% would strongly recommend to family and friends working for their employer. This was strongest among younger members (18-29 years of age), with 64% recommending working at their employer and 77% their employer’s services.
• 54% of respondents would strongly recommend their employers’ services.
• The top three reasons given for staying with their employer were: colleagues and coworkers, employer’s location and ‘liking the company I work for’.
• The top three reasons for leaving an employer were: developing new skills, trying something different and not being paid enough.
• Their salary was the most disliked aspects of their roles followed by not enough opportunities for growth (promotion).

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THE Financial Services Council (FSC) has released the second draft of the Life Insurance Code of Practice 2.0 (Code) for public consultation.

The revised draft released today incorporates feedback from the first consultation draft, as well as recommendations from the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services inquiry into the life insurance industry, ASIC reviews, Productivity Commission reports, feedback from consumer advocates and the Hayne Royal Commission.

FSC CEO Sally Loane said, “The Code, which is mandatory for all FSC’s life insurance members and will be governed by the independent Life Code Compliance Committee, has been reviewed line by line and letter by letter from the starting point that every clause can be improved.

“We have had the Code independently re-structured and re-written by plain English experts to ensure that the Code is as easy to read and as easy to navigate for everyday Australians as possible,” Ms Loane said.

“The FSC appreciates the consultative approach taken over recent months by consumer groups which has helped us develop a stronger and more consumer-focused Code.

“The FSC is pleased to present this version for a final public consultation before we submit the Code for registration under ASIC’s new enforceable code regime.”

The first Code originally came into effect on June 30, 2016, binding all life insurance FSC members to minimum standards of service for consumers for the first time. The Code covers all new policies taken out in Australia, because all life insurers issuing new policies in Australia are FSC members.

“I am proud of the current Life Insurance Code of Practice and of the industry’s enthusiasm to adopt it, but we recognise that Codes can always be further improved, and that’s what this version sets out to do,” Ms Loane said.

“We look forward to working with all stakeholders to ensure the Code gives consumers the confidence to get life insurance and trust that it will work as they expect and when they need it.”

Interested parties can give their feedback on this draft of the Code until September 29, 2021. Send any feedback to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

To find out more, including to download a copy of the revised Code, go to https://fsc.org.au/resources/2247-fsc-life-insurance-code-of-practice-2-0-final-consultation-version/file

About the Financial Services Council
The Financial Services Council (FSC) has over 100 members representing Australia's retail and wholesale funds management businesses, superannuation funds, life insurers, financial advisory networks and licensed trustee companies. The industry is responsible for investing almost $3 trillion on behalf of more than 15.6 million Australians. The pool of funds under management is larger than Australia’s GDP and the capitalisation of the Australian Securities Exchange and is the fourth largest pool of managed funds in the world.

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THE Queensland Resources Council (QRC) has welcomed the announcement by Senex Energy it will spend $40 million on increasing natural gas production at its Atlas operation in Southern Queensland.

The expansion will enable Senex to increase its annual gas supply at Atlas, located near Wandoan, by 50 percent to reach 18 petajoules a year.

Under a Queensland Government policy, Senex’ Atlas gas project is classified as a domestic-only production tenure which means its gas can only be sold to Australian end users. 

QRC chief executive Ian Macfarlane said the QRC supported the government’s domestic gas policy, which was introduced to give Queensland and Australian manufacturers reliable access to gas.

Mr Macfarlane said Australia’s domestic gas supply market is expected to tighten over the next 12 months, reinforcing the importance of gas companies like Senex expanding their operations to supply more gas, including to manufacturers in southern states. 

"It’s a clear signal to other states they need to do more to shore up their own energy needs by opening up their own fields,” he said. 

“The resources sector is transitioning to a lower emissions future as fast as the technology will allow, but it can’t happen overnight. In the meantime, Australia will continue to need sources of energy like gas, especially for manufacturing purposes.” 

Mr Macfarlane said Senex’ expansion plans, which the company estimates will inject $15 million into the local economy and create 100 new jobs in the construction phase, are another example of the resources sector playing a critical role in underpinning the state economy and supporting regional communities.

www.qrc.org.au

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THE House Employment, Education and Training Committee will hear evidence from key peak bodies and other organisations by videoconference as hearings continue for the inquiry into adult literacy and its importance.

Committee Chair, Andrew Laming MP said, "The committee has received a broad range of evidence on the need for improved strategies for supporting people with low English language, literacy, numeracy and digital literacy to improve their skills and to access vital services.

"On Thursday, we will hear from the Federation of Ethnic Communities' Councils of Australia and the Settlement Council of Australia on migrant and refugee literacy issues. We will also hear evidence on the teaching of English to speakers of other languages from the Australian Council of TESOL Associations," Mr Laming said.

"To help us investigate First Nations literacy challenges, we will hear from the Literacy for Life Foundation, Tharawal Aboriginal Corporation and the National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation.

"The Australian Primary Principals Association and the Australian Council of State School Organisations will provide evidence about school education, and Community Colleges Australia and the Australian Council of Adult Literacy will give evidence about adult literacy provision," he said.

"The committee will also hear from Family Planning New South Wales about the importance of health literacy, and the Mid North Coast Community Legal Centre, who will provide evidence on the difficulties people with low literacy experience accessing services and the support available to them."

Public hearing details

Date: Thursday, 19 August 2021
Time: 9am to 4pm (AEST)
Location: via videoconference
Program: available here.

The hearings will be broadcast live at aph.gov.au/live.

Further information about the inquiry is available on the Committee’s website.

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