The government plans to encourage the operators of child care facilities to raise salaries to tackle the chronic shortage of day care workers and access, government sources said Thursday.
Under a measure to be introduced in fiscal 2017, the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry intends to prioritize budget allocations for facilities that raise base salaries, in the hope that higher, stabler incomes will help prevent people from quitting, the sources said.
The government has already said it plans to raise the average monthly salary for day care workers by around ¥6,000 and that of experienced workers by around ¥40,000 starting in fiscal 2017. But it is also looking at additional steps, fearing the funds it will provide to the operators could be used for bonuses rather than base salaries. Using the money for bonuses makes sense to operators who are looking to keep labor costs low.