Union demands urgent reform of childcare

Revelations that one in five childcare centres are in breach of health and safety
laws highlight the need to overhaul the sector, the union representing childcare
workers says.
One in five childcare centres have unsafe buildings or equipment, and a similar
number fail on basic hygiene and food standards, the latest audit of childcare
centres reveals.
More than 10 per cent of centres failed inspections by the National Childcare
Accreditation Council in 2009.
A further 25 per cent failed to keep potentially dangerous items out of the reach of
children.
And childcare workers in one in 20 centres had not washed their hands after changing
nappies, wiping noses or before food preparation.
The Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Workers Union says the audit "underpins
the urgency for reform".
"And we would urge the government to be bold with those reforms," LHMU assistant
national secretary Sue Lines told AAP.
The federal government has put $22 million on the table for states and territories
to develop a national set of standards for the childcare sector.
It wants staff ratios and qualifications lifted, and a quality rating system for
centres.
Ms Lines said boosting staff numbers "would lift standards".
She said the government would also have greater control of quality if the 50 per
cent childcare tax rebate was paid to centres rather than parents.