The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) says many childcare centres across Nova Scotia are struggling to recruit staff because of low wages and a lack of recognition.

Now, the union is urging the province’s education minister to act, as some Early Childhood Educators (ECE) say they’ve been waiting months for back pay. This stems from Nova Scotia’s ECE wage grid under the $10-a-day childcare plan, where operators await provincial funding to distribute back pay.

In a news release, CUPE 4745 President and Early Childhood Educator Tabitha Warren says, “This delay sends a message that the province doesn’t value the people who make childcare possible. It’s unacceptable, and it needs to be fixed now.”

Union representatives say centres cannot issue the payments without authorization from the department.

CUPE Nova Scotia President Alan Linkletter says “everyone deserves to be paid on time, and our ECEs are no exception. The Minister has the ability and the responsibility to unlock this funding immediately. Delaying back pay only deepens the staffing challenges that already affect the entire childcare sector.”

The union says it is urging officials to release the outstanding funds immediately.

Meantime, Education Minister Brendan Maguire says the money is coming it is just taking time.

He tells reporters it’s not about holding the funds back.

“It really is about going through every single hour for the last few years that people have worked in this province,” says Maguire.

He says it’s very labour intensive and that crews are working around the clock to get it done.