Market-oriented nursery institutions have high fees and different service standards; the supply of inclusive nursery institutions is insufficient, and the enthusiasm of enterprises to participate is not high——
Childcare for the children of workers aged 0-3 is difficult, how to solve it?
Our reporter Zhang Qiang
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"Who will bring the child" has become a real problem that plagues many fertile families.
Industry insiders suggest that for market-oriented nursery institutions, access conditions and regulatory systems should be clarified in a timely manner to stabilize development expectations and form a healthy market order; for inclusive nursery institutions, supporting policies and subsidies such as venues and facilities should be implemented. standards, and further mobilize the enthusiasm of enterprises to participate in the handling of trusteeships.
"My son started nursery classes when he was two years old. The nursery fee of 4,000 yuan is equivalent to my income for one month, but in order to return to the workplace, I can only 'meat aches'." August 29, Qingdao, Shandong Province Wang Ying, a female worker in the West Coast New District of the city, told reporters.
With the country's liberalization of the two-child and three-child birth policies, "who will bring the child after birth" has become a practical problem that plagues many fertile families, especially in dual-earner families, the problem of "difficulty in bringing a baby" is particularly prominent.
On August 16, 17 departments including the National Health and Health Commission and the National Development and Reform Commission issued the "Guiding Opinions on Further Improving and Implementing Active Reproductive Support Measures", which specifically mentioned the need to increase the supply of inclusive childcare services, encourage and support qualified children. The kindergarten enrolls children aged 2-3 years.
How to achieve "child care"?
Industry insiders pointed out that for market-oriented nursery institutions, access conditions and regulatory systems should be clarified in a timely manner to stabilize development expectations and form a healthy market order; for inclusive nursery institutions, supporting policies and subsidies such as venues and facilities should be implemented. standards, and further mobilize the enthusiasm of employers to participate in the handling of trusteeships.
High cost, limited choice
In order to choose a childcare institution with a suitable price and reliable service, Wang Ying bluntly said that "it took a lot of effort".
She repeatedly inspected seven or eight institutions within a month.
"Most of the institutions with good conditions are group-run schools, and the monthly fee is more than 6,000 yuan. Most of the institutions that charge 2,000 to 3,000 yuan are small institutions." Wang Ying said that the monthly salary of ordinary office workers in Qingdao is about 5,000 yuan, and it is often 5,000 to 6,000 yuan. The cost of childcare is indeed too much for working families.
In addition to the high cost of childcare, the shortage of childcare institutions also plagues many working families.
Sun Yan's family lives in Laoshan District, Qingdao City. There are more than a dozen public and private kindergartens in the surrounding area, but there are less than 5 nursery institutions for 0-3 years old, and they are all market-oriented institutions.
Sun Yan is usually busy with work, and it takes 20 minutes to drive to the nearest nursery institution. "It takes more than 30 minutes to encounter traffic jams, which is very inconvenient."
The experiences of workers Wang Ying and Sun Yan basically reflect the current situation of childcare difficulties faced by children aged 0-3 in my country.
On August 17, Hao Fuqing, deputy director and first-level inspector of the Social Development Department of the National Development and Reform Commission, said in response to a reporter's question that domestic surveys show that unattended infants and young children are the primary factor hindering childbirth, and about 1/3 of the families in the city. There is a demand for childcare, but in reality, the supply is relatively insufficient, especially the supply of inclusive services has shortcomings.
Data shows that as of 2021, the number of kindergartens in the country will reach 295,000, while the company survey data shows that there are only 76,000 nursery-related enterprises in my country.
Institutional operations are facing difficulties, "crossing the river by feeling the stones"
Wang Xiaohan is the head of the Songuoer Nursery and Growth Center in the West Coast New Area of Qingdao. In December 2021, she opened this small nursery institution in the community. There are currently 3 classes and 55 children.
Because most of the surrounding areas are migrant workers, she set the childcare fee at 1,880 yuan per month.
Regarding parents' complaints about the "high cost of childcare institutions", Wang Xiaohan has his own difficulties: At present, most childcare institutions are market-oriented, and the rent, facilities, and personnel costs are also rising year by year. "For example, our center, every year The cost of rent, utilities, and 12 teachers' salaries is about 1 million yuan. Coupled with the impact of the epidemic, we are losing money almost every month."
On September 1, at the State Council’s regular policy briefing held by the State Council Information Office, Du Xixue, head of the Population and Family Department of the National Health Commission, said that at present, childcare services are still in their infancy, and 90% of them are for-profit institutions, which are also subject to The impact of the epidemic has caused childcare institutions to face three major difficulties: difficulty in reducing costs, difficulty in stabilizing enrollment, and difficulty in dealing with risks.
According to Du Xixue, in the early stage, nursery institutions have enjoyed some inclusive relief and support measures according to regulations, and some localities have also explored the establishment of financial support mechanisms to support nurseries through special subsidies, subsidies in lieu of awards, water and electricity prices, etc. industry development.
He pointed out that in the implementation process of various support policies for childcare services, there is still room for exploration in terms of the strength and accuracy of their support.
Wang Xiaohan also told reporters that, unlike ordinary kindergartens, infant care has three types of classes: nursing classes (6-12 months), primary classes (1-2 years old), and senior classes (2-3 years old). Full-day care, half-day care, time care, temporary care and other services, but in terms of curriculum, service items, cost pricing, etc., "everyone is crossing the river by feeling the stones".
Looking forward to the breakthrough of inclusive nursery education and the realization of "child care"
In order to provide "child care" for workers' families, in recent years, my country has been continuously improving the policy and legal system for child care services.
The General Office of the State Council has successively issued the "Guiding Opinions on Promoting the Development of Care Services for Infants and Young Children Under 3 Years Old" and "Opinions on Promoting the Healthy Development of Nursing Care Services for the Elderly", proposing development goals and policy measures for care services; since 2020, new revisions have been made. The population and family planning law, the law on the protection of minors, the law on the promotion of family education and other laws and regulations have all added or established special provisions, stipulating the development of childcare services; the "14th Five-Year Plan" outline also proposes that by 2025, The number of childcare places for infants under the age of 3 should reach 4.5 per 1,000 population.
With the introduction of the national top-level design, various places are also exploring ways to break the situation of inclusive childcare.
Beijing has issued a plan, proposing to strengthen the construction of community nursery service facilities and create a “quarter-an-hour” nursery service circle; support qualified employers and large parks to provide nursery services for employees.
Hangzhou explores the "park-embedded" model, simultaneously planning education and childcare supporting land in industrial parks with a scale of more than 10,000 people, and supports the adoption of public and private construction, with multiple employers and childcare institutions sharing costs and responsibilities.
For the first time, Guangdong Province has included the two major projects of the special action for inclusive childcare services and the upgrading and upgrading of childcare services into the key projects of Guangdong Province's national economic and social development plan, and it is clear that the total number of public kindergartens where the integrated kindergarten is located shall not be less than 50%. %.
Regarding the "employer-run nursery institution" model, which is widely concerned by the society, the reporter learned that some units still take a wait-and-see attitude, "worrying that it does not meet the requirements of building a modern enterprise system, increasing the operating burden, and assuming safety responsibilities" are the main reasons.
In this regard, Li Hongjun, Director of the Population and Family Division of the Qingdao Municipal Health and Health Commission, said that the employer's entrustment is still a new thing. Based on the principle of development first and then standardization, the labor union can give full play to the democratic consultation and democratic supervision role, and mobilize the cooperation between the employer and the employees. positivity.
"Large-scale employers do it alone or entrust a third-party professional organization to undertake it, the same system or the same industry unit to jointly do it, and the area with dense employees relies on the community to do it.