Over a million Australian families will receive a childcare subsidy from July 2023 as a multi-billion dollar bill has passed the Senate on Nov. 22. However, an acute shortage of workers is threatening to hinder the new policy.
In September, the Labor government introduced the Cheaper Child Care bill to the Australian parliament to implement a major policy proposed during the federal election.
The bill is expected to provide cheaper childcare services to 96 percent (about 1.26 million) of Australian families with young children at a revised cost of $4.7 billion (US$3.1 billion) over a four-year period.
Prior to the passing of the legislation, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese touted the bill as a good policy that boosted the participation of women in the workforce and benefited the development of young children….