Childcare workers rally on pay and funding

Thousands of childcare workers are to gather outside the Dáil today in protest against cutbacks in the sector which they say make it impossible for them to earn a living wage.

The rally is organised by the Association of Childhood Professionals (ACP), the representative body for a sector that employs 25,000 workers in creches, montessoris and other pre-school services, many on minimum wage.

Trade unions Siptu and Impact and groups such as Barnardos, the National Women’s Council, and Early Childhood Ireland are backing the action.