Parents pay double for childcare

IRISH parents are paying an average of €478.24 in childcare per child per month, twice as much as Austria and Japan, according to a new OECD study.

The report, Babies and Bosses, said the high cost of childcare means parents prefer to use family as babysitters.

Because of the exorbitant costs, households where both parents work are no better off than if just one parent worked, the study found.