Some private child care operators in Alberta threaten to opt out of $10-a-day deal

A group representing private child care operators in Alberta is warning about centres opting out of Canada's $10-a-day child-care deal amid 'government turmoil.'

Some Alberta child care operators are threatening to opt out of Canada’s $10-a-day child care deal amid what they call “government turmoil.”

The Association of Alberta Childcare Entrepreneurs (AACE) told Global News many of its members have “finally had enough” following a recent, tense town hall meeting.

“I think people are frustrated,” AACE chair Krystal Churcher said. “I’m frustrated.”

Churcher said operators, who she believed were initially “coerced” into signing agreements “under duress,” are now facing the potential withholding of critical funding. She said the government has announced plans to send a survey to operators to understand the cost of running child care centers in the province.

“We’re three years into this agreement,” she pointed out. “Three years into transforming our child care sector and only now are they asking for financial information.”

Churcher said the government has not listened to what operators have had to say about the costs associated with providing “quality” care.

“You want a sustainable system that provides niche programming that supports all of your child’s needs — that is not a discount service,” she said. “Those are things that cost money.”

“If we think we can do it for $10-a-day when you can’t get a coffee and a muffin for $10-a-day — we’re delusional.”