More than 1,000 childcare workers yesterday demanded equal benefits as preschool teachers at a protest in Taipei.
The protesters gathered at Liberty Square, before marching to the Ministry of Education building, holding signs that read: “Educators want equal rights” and “No discrimination, benefits should be the same.”
After preschools and other childcare services were integrated, preschool educators’ rights and benefits differed based on their job titles.
Photo: CNA
Childcare workers are asked to take on extra duties and work overtime as teachers, but are not eligible for performance-based bonuses or the National Travel Card subsidy for civil servants, the protesters said.
More responsibilities and work are being pushed onto daycare workers, but their benefits have not increased accordingly, Taiwan Early Childhood Education Union (TCEU) chairwoman Hsu Wen-ching (許文菁) said.
To meet the demands of parents, they are asked to work more hours during summer and winter vacations, as well as after school, but their administrative duties remain the same, Hsu said.
About 1,500 of the nation’s 7,000 public preschool educators attended the rally, as they are fed up with the unfair working environment, she said.
Since the union was established nearly four years ago, they have received many petitions from preschool educators about unfair treatment, she said.
They include being denied annual paid leave, being reprimanded in front of colleagues, being asked to leave the classroom during break time and receiving unfair year-end performance reviews, she said.
As preschool educators do not have access to the same protection mechanisms as teachers, they can receive poor performance reviews for even small mistakes, and can only contest it to the same supervisor that gave them the unfair review, Hsu said.
A preschool educator identified only as “A,” who works in a rural mountainous area, said they did not receive an allowance for working in a rural area when they started their job, and only received it after the TCEU stepped in.
The incident made them feel that they are considered inferior to teachers, A said.
An educator in New Taipei City identified as “N” said she was often mistreated during work.
The heavy workload added on her by her superiors had even led to her feeling overstressed and she had a miscarriage, N said.
When she worked in the general affairs section of a preschool, she was even asked to prepay for all her expenses with her own money, and when she protested it to her supervisor, they chastised her in front of her colleagues, she said.
She was also warned that she would receive a poor performance review if she refused to do the tasks assigned to her, she said.
An educator identified as “H” said they have a master’s degree, but are treated differently than teachers and do not have the benefit of the National Travel Card subsidy for civil servants.
Another educator, who was 38 weeks pregnant, was denied paid leave and later experienced a miscarriage, H said.
Wang Huey-chiou (王慧秋), head of the Division of Preschool Education at the K-12 Education Administration, received the protesters’ written petition.
She said the ministry would discuss the 12 demands proposed by the union, and expressed the ministry’s gratitude for their contributions to the education system.
The union’s demands also include counting their service years in private preschools, reviewing break-time regulations and increasing the allowances for those working in rural areas and the allowances based on education level.
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