I am an Early Childhood Educator who graduated from the Nova Scotia Teachers College in Truro. This marks my 31st year of working for a great childcare centre located in HRM.
One would think that after 31 years of service working for the same employer, I would be retired or planning my retirement. Unfortunately this is not the case, as my employer cannot afford a pension plan for it’s staff. Who by the way deserve a great pension plan!!!! So I will have to keep working until I am 65 years old and maybe older in a job that is physically and mentally demanding.
I have advocated all my career for Early Childhood Educators to be recognized as the professionals we are. Unfortunately we have not been able to achieve this goal yet. We are under paid, have no pension, no benefits or if we do have benefits the premiums that we pay are too expensive for the money we make. We are still viewed as babysitters and not as educators caring and developing young minds. It is appalling and degrading that in the year 2021, we are still viewed this way.
As for me, it is too late for a pension plan to be beneficial, but I will continue to fight for all Early Childhood Educators to get the recognition, benefits and pensions that we all deserve.
To all my fellow Early Childhood Educators; we need to unite and fight for our rights for fair wages, affordable benefits and a pension plan that would allow us to retire above the poverty line!!
Nicole Poirier
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Tragically, Ms Poirier’s line says it all: “We are still viewed as babysitters and not as educators caring and developing young minds. It is appalling and degrading that in the year 2021, we are still viewed this way. ”
The Corporate Captured Nova Scotia government is consistent in its twisted efforts to benefit industry. And its squandering of the opportunity to serve people or the planet. They simply don’t care.