Growing demand for pre—school professionals

SINGAPORE: The pre—school sector will offer 3,000 more jobs in the next five years as childcare centres ramp up operations.

The sector currently hires some 11,000 people.

But it has an immediate need for 1,000 more, said Mr Ang Hin Kee, who heads the labour movement’s education cluster.

Mr Ang was speaking at a career fair for the pre—school education sector on Saturday.

The government had earlier announced plans for 200 more childcare centres by 2017.

Mr Ang said tripartite partners are working to raise the wages and career prospects of pre—school teachers to attract qualified and passionate applicants.

But wage increases have to follow higher qualifications, said Mr Ang, so the labour movement’s strategy is to help sector professionals upgrade their skills.

Mr Ang said: "Whether it be government subsidy, whether it be fees to be paid, I think we need to look the issue squarely in the eye. If we don’t increase either one of these combinations, for the operator there is ultimately a plateau in which they can take from their revenue to pay. So the support needs to come from stakeholders, the government, and parents."

The education cluster also wants to raise the wages of the 2,000 centre attendants who provide cleaning or cooking services in pre—schools around the country.

The majority of these workers earn about S$900 a month, and the target, Mr Ang said, is to raise this to at least S$1,000.

— CNA/cc/ck