Green Party leader Roderic O'Gorman wants childcare workers' salaries 'aligned' with teachers
In an exclusive interview with the Irish Mirror, Roderic O'Gorman said that he would like this to be achieved over the course of a five-year term in Government
Green Party leader Roderic O’Gorman has said the wages of early childhood educators should be "aligned" with what teachers are paid by the next Government.
In an exclusive interview with the Irish Mirror, the Dublin West general election candidate said that he would like this to be achieved over the course of a five-year term in Government.
He also hit out at the Rural Independents group and "their ilk", who he said "have not delivered" and can only point to their "inflammatory speeches".
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The Green Party is seeking to re-enter Government and has continuously stressed that Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil cannot be "trusted" to go into coalition on their own.
During his time as Children’s Minister, Mr O’Gorman reduced childcare fees by up to 50 per cent across several budgets.
However, he accepts that more needs to be done to create extra capacity in facilities.
He said the State needs to "step in" and provide childcare through the State.
He also said workers need to be paid more, suggesting that their salaries should be "aligned" with teachers'.
"They never had a minimum wage before I became minister," Mr O’Gorman told the Irish Mirror.
"In my time as minister, they've seen two pay increases and I've put money aside in Budget 2025 for a pay increase from next September.
"I still don't believe childcare professionals are paid enough. In our manifesto, we've set out further budgetary allocation so we can continue to increase their pay.
"Ultimately, we have to look to align their salaries with the salaries of other educators in Ireland."
When asked if he meant aligning pay with teachers' salaries, Mr O’Gorman said, "That is what we need to work towards."
He continued: "I think the amount of study they do is as significant. The importance of their role is as significant as primary and secondary teachers.
"I would see the majority of it being done over the course of the next government. I'm not sure would we be fully there by the end of the next government.
"But we’d take very significant steps towards that degree of alignment and ensuring that childcare professionals are given the pay to recognise the importance of their work."
The salary of a primary school teacher on point one of the payscale is €40,635. It is €42,015 for post-primary teachers.
The minimum wage for Early Years Educators and School-Age Childcare Practitioners is €13.65 an hour.
Despite the ongoing election sniping between Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Greens, Mr O’Gorman insisted the "government has worked".
He added: "I think it could work again, but would have to be on the basis of a very clearly negotiated Programme for Government."
He reiterated his desire to talk to parties on the left in formation talks. While the Greens will talk to Sinn Féin, Mr O’Gorman said it is a "big issue" that he does not know what the party’s climate policies are.
The party has become a bogeyman for some in rural Ireland, despite the Greens insisting it has support.
However, he said comments made in the Dáil by Rural Independent TDs, including Mattie McGrath and the Healy Raes, have an impact.
"Particularly some of the misinformation that's put out there about the environment generally and about what the Green Party have been doing," he said.
"But what also has an impact is the fact that we've grown the number of journeys on bus services linking towns and villages across the country.
"The actual changes that we're making are having a really positive impact on people's lives.
"That's maybe not the stuff that's going to get lots of likes on Facebook. But it is the stuff that people, when they reflect and say, ‘Well, what do we want to happen over the next four-and-a-half years’, we can point to a record of delivery.
"Whereas the Rural Independents and their ilk can only speak to inflammatory speeches. They haven't actually delivered."
Mr O’Gorman said immigration will be "an issue for all parties in this election". This, he said, includes the current situation and "what happens next".
Fine Gael leader Simon Harris has said he believes asylum seekers should be asked to pay towards their keep once they start working.
Mr O’Gorman said that "charging a small number of people an amount of money is not going to have any big impact on how migration takes place in this country".
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