Reports Highlight Progress with BC’s Early Care and Learning Recruitment and Retention Strategy and Priorities for the Sector

August 20, 2025

By SRDC-SRSA

Findings show gains in recruitment and training, and call for renewed action on compensation, retention, and system coordination.

Vancouver, BC – August 13, 2025 – The Early Childhood Educators of BC (ECEBC) has released two new evaluation reports on the Early Care and Learning Recruitment and Retention Strategy (ECL R&R), a 10-year initiative launched in 2018 as part of the broader ChildCareBC plan. Developed by the Social Research and Demonstration Corporation (SRDC), the reports provide a midpoint assessment of the Strategy’s progress and identify critical priorities for continued system-level action to support the early care and learning workforce across British Columbia. Together, they address key questions related to workforce stability, career viability, and compensation.

Progress Since 2019

Adequate and Stable Workforce

• Recruitment strategies: The supply of Early Childhood Educators (ECEs) and Early Childhood Educator Assistants (ECEAs) has continued to grow, particularly in centre-based settings. However, the number of home-based providers has declined. In 2023, 40% of employers
  reported a net loss of staff, up from 34% in 2019; however, vacancy filling improved, and reliance on underqualified hires decreased.
• Qualifications: The number of professionals with ECL-related qualifications is rising annually, but the proportion holding full ECE or ECE specialty certification falls short of sector needs.
• Staffing stability: While staffing challenges persist, 2023 was the first year in which overall conditions did not worsen.
• Bursary supports: Bursaries continued to reduce financial barriers, with the highest number of student bursaries granted and total amounts awarded in Summer 2023.
• Career pathways: Around six in ten professionals reported opportunities for growth within the sector. Employer support for career progress has increased since 2019.
• Professional development: Access to professional development has significantly expanded. However, employers report skill gaps in inclusive practice and communication with families.

ECL Perception as Viable, Sustainable, and Valued Career

• Mixed public perception: In 2023, 47% of professionals agreed the public values child care, up slightly from 44% in 2022, but down from 51% in 2019.
• Career Commitment: More professionals now view ECL as their chosen field compared to 2019, but an increasing number expect to leave within a year, reflecting ongoing concerns about burnout and instability.
  “ECEs are struggling. We deal with children with behaviours that are not yet diagnosed or have the access to strategies in place to support them. I have met more than 30 ECEs in the past year that have had to take a stress leave or have been burnt out. There needs to be some support for all the people who break their backs and get burnt out through the hard workload.”
  ECL Professional – Workforce Survey Participant
• Fewer professionals are recommending the field to others: In 2023, only two thirds of professionals would recommend child care as a career, down from three quarters in 2019.

Compensation Plans and Human Resources Strategies

• Modest Wage Growth and Variation in Benefits: Since 2019, inflation-adjusted wages have risen by about $2.15/hour, mainly due to the wage enhancement. Absent the enhancement, real wages would have remained essentially unchanged. Access to pensions and extended benefits remains limited and inconsistent.
  “I earn more working outside the childcare sector. There is less stress and much less physical demand. I left the field due to lack of appropriate compensation. […] This field will implode on itself if you don’t make some serious changes.”
  ECL Professional – Interview Participant
• Retention pressures: There were modest improvements in workforce engagement and retention over the period. However, the number of those expecting to leave the sector has increased since 2019.
•  The wage enhancement has symbolic significance for many in the sector: Many ECL professionals view the enhancement as a signal that their work is valued and concerns about compensation are acknowledged.
  “The government is beginning to recognize the importance of Early Childhood Education and Care by supplementing wages and education and training and subsidizing for fees. But more needs to be done to encourage young people to choose this as their career.”
  ECL Professional – Workforce Survey Participant

Recommendations and Next Steps
These findings demonstrate that the ECL R&R Strategy has helped prevent further destabilization of the workforce; however, meeting the 2028 goals will require a stronger, more coordinated, and equity-informed approach.

The final report identified three key areas for action:

1. Establish a Professional Career Pathway
   • Improve baseline compensation for early care and learning professionals.
   • Introduce a province-wide wage grid linked to qualifications and responsibilities.
   • Incentivize completion of ECE credentials and ongoing professional development
   • Enhance minimum education standards to strengthen educator capabilities and program quality.
   • Renew efforts to recruit and retain educators from diverse and underrepresented communities.
2. Strengthen Sector Consultation and Support
   • Expand structured consultation with ECL professionals to guide responsive policy.
   • Increase access to regional pedagogical mentors, peer supports, and leadership pathways.
   • Continue to support public recognition of ECL professionals’ essential contributions to families, communities, and the economy.
3. Address Structural Inequities
   • Embed trauma-informed, feminist, and anti-oppressive approaches into all programs and policies.
   • Ensure new tools and funding streams actively reduce racial, gendered, or geographic inequities.
   • Create consistent, accessible supports for upskilling, career mobility, and sector sustainability.

As British Columbia continues to expand access to high-quality, affordable child care, these recommendations make clear that the success of the system depends on the stability, well-being, and leadership of the early childhood workforce.

Statement from ECEBC
“This final report highlights the critical role of the ECL R&R Strategy in bringing more resilience and stabilization to our early care and learning sector. While we have seen meaningful progress in areas such as wage enhancements and professional development, more needs to be done. The ongoing challenges underscore the necessity for a sustained, bold, and comprehensive approach. Continued collaboration and innovative strategies are essential to create a sustainable, supportive environment for our educators. We are committed to working with our government partners to build a robust early childhood education system that meets the needs of our children and supports the needs of children, families, and early childhood professionals in BC.”
Emily Mlieczko, Executive Director of ECEBC.

About the Evaluation of the Early Care and Learning Recruitment and Retention Strategy in British Columbia
The research and community engagement process was governed by a Sector Steering Committee, which included key stakeholders who provided expertise and disseminated the engagement opportunities within their networks. Their commitment to the project has been
instrumental to its success.

The research, analysis and reports were provided by the Social Research and Demonstration Corporation (SRDC). SRDC is a non-profit research organization, created specifically to develop, field test and rigorously evaluate new programs.

The Early Childhood Educators of BC advances early childhood education and educators in the province of British Columbia. ECEBC is dedicated to building respect for early childhood education and educators and advancing the profession.

The Sector Labour Market Partnerships program provides “collaborative partnerships within or between sectors, populations, and/or economic regions for projects that anticipate or address labour market challenges, investigate knowledge and skills gaps, and identify and test innovative solutions.” For more information about SLMP projects, see https://www.workbc.ca/Employer-Resources/Funding-and-Programs/Sector-Labour-MarketPartnerships.aspx

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Media Contact:
Emily Mlieczko, Executive Director
Early Childhood Educators of BC
Email: [email protected]

Read the release from Early Childhood Educators of BC

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