Latest news with #forprofit
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Marcelo Claure leads UK for-profit university deal in AI education push
Billionaire former SoftBank executive Marcelo Claure has led the purchase of a 50 per cent stake in one of the UK's largest for-profit Sign in to access your portfolio
The Guardian
11-07-2025
- General
- The Guardian
Australia's current childcare funding model risks failing our most precious people
When you attach profit to caring, you create a problem. We don't need yet another series of reviews and reports to tell us that when you rely on the blunt-force of the market, you will see profiteering from government subsidies, lack of quality in service delivery dressed up as 'efficiency' to maximise profits, and next to no services in areas where there's little money to be made. Australia's current funding model, the childcare subsidy (CCS), has facilitated the rapid expansion of for-profit providers, who now operate nearly 75% of all childcare services across the country. Research shows that for-profit providers typically deliver lower quality care while charging higher fees than not-for-profit services. Individual providers who are failing in their care for our most precious people should be held to account, but this is a systemic failure, and the broader fix will be a big, complicated job. Many of those who work in the early childhood education sector will tell you that they struggle to provide quality education to our children and to keep them safe amid sometimes shocking lack of oversight and adherence to existing rules. In a recent national survey of 2,000 members from the AWU, conducted before charges were laid against a worker in Victoria, one staff member from that state said 'I can't even guarantee the safety of the children and myself'. Of the educators surveyed, 77% said they were operating below minimum staffing requirements at least weekly, and 42% said it was happening daily. The early childhood educators who I have met have been hard-working, kind, mostly women, who work for low pay to do incredibly important work. Some private centres are exceeding requirements and standards. But most are not, and the system is failing not only children and families, but the staff and organisations who are doing the right thing. The ABC's Four Corners report in March revealed that one in 10 childcare centres in Australia have never been rated by regulators and pointed out that only 14% of for-profit centres meet national standards. Those standards are set by the Australian Children's Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA), but it has no power to enforce them across a system which is managed by states and territories. So how do we fix it? This question needs to be tackled now, especially if the government is serious about implementing a universal early childhood education and care system, which it should be. Evidence shows that children do most of their formative development under age five, and that quality early childhood education enables them to reach their full potential. That opportunity must be offered to all children in an equitable society. Quality, accessible, affordable care also enables women to work. It begins to remove the innate disadvantages for women who begin a lifelong slide into lower wages, less superannuation and higher financial risk almost as soon as they walk out of school or tertiary education. For those reading along who will now default to the simplistic just stay home with the kids position, get a grip. Single parents don't have a choice. Nor do couples who are struggling with the price of housing. This generation of parents may not have the option of one parent staying at home. Do not blame families for this. Safe, quality, accessible, affordable care for our children is essential for families, women, children and the economy. But protecting profit for private providers should not be guiding policy. What we need is better oversight and better regulation. Governments like being presented with solutions, so here are two. First, as the National children's commissioner, Anne Hollonds, says, 'National cabinet must make 'child safety and wellbeing' a key priority.' 'Currently the word 'children' is entirely missing from the list of priorities for National Cabinet.' We need a cabinet minister for Children. A minister would prioritise the litany of issues afflicting our kids, from the transformative opportunity to implement a universal early childhood education system, to youth safety and mental health, to the impact of social media and so on. Secondly, we need an Early Childhood Commission to set a national approach to regulatory standards, so that everyone is meeting them, including the for-profit providers. Earlier this year I joined The Parenthood, Goodstart Early Learning, Early Childhood Australia and Royal Far West calling for a national commission to set a national standard and weed out unscrupulous operators. It would also oversee the rolling out of a universal early childhood education system, a policy shift that could be as transformative as the introduction of Medicare for families, children and the nation. Labor has the numbers and the mandate to leave this legacy. Never waste a crisis. Zoe Daniel is a three-time ABC foreign correspondent and former independent member for Goldstein
Yahoo
22-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Kidney dialysis industry accused of maximizing profits over patients
The great majority of patients requiring kidney dialysis in the U.S. are treated in outpatient clinics almost all run by for-profit corporations which, critics say, prioritize company profits over patients' needs. According to Tom Mueller, author of "How to Make a Killing," patients on dialysis in America die one to two times faster than in any other developed country. "48 Hours" correspondent Erin Moriarty examines the serious concerns about the dialysis industry, where a CBS News investigation has found one-third of all dialysis clinics failed to meet federal performance standards this year. The companies deny these allegations, and say patient care and safety are their primary concerns.
CTV News
21-05-2025
- Business
- CTV News
‘Devastating': Federal cap on funded for-profit child-care spaces has Alberta providers concerned
Some for-profit child-care providers say their livelihoods are at stake as the federal government caps how many of them are eligible for funding.
CTV News
21-05-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Child-care operator wary of future amid funding eligibility changes
Alberta could run out of federally funded for-profit child-care spaces by this summer and, in anticipation, says it is limiting which new spaces receive the remaining dollars. Industry members were told this on Thursday via a letter signed by Jobs, Economy and Trade Minister Matt Jones, who would be switched in a cabinet shuffle the next day. Under the Canada-Alberta Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement (CACWELCC), which the province signed in November 2021 and is set to expire on March 31, 2026, a cap of 26,200 child-care spaces are eligible for federal funding. In the letter, Jones said Alberta's requests for more flexibility have been denied, leaving the provincial government with the 'difficult' decision about how to 'best use' the remaining funding. Effective May 15, affordability funding will be given first to existing for-profit programs that are creating space to meet a proven demand, as well as new private spaces in Grande Prairie, Red Deer, Lethbridge, Fort McMurray and Canmore/Banff, where there are long waitlists. The operators must be in the final stage of the licensing process and open on or before Sept. 30, unless they have a different timeline outlined in a Space Creation Grant Agreement with the province. The change is necessary 'to address the immediate pressure caused by the federal cap,' Jones' letter read. But an operator who planned to open a second daycare this fall says it jeopardizes quality care for families who have been waiting and the livelihoods of those who invested in starting a new business. 'What can you say to parents who are expecting affordable care, but now we can't provide it?' asked Rhesa Palaypay, one of the founders of Trinity Early Learning Academy. Palaypay plans to still open the new location in St. Albert, but isn't yet sure how she is going to make that happen. She estimated she has invested $750,000 since January 2024 into the new business, which she said she started because her first facility, Klarvatten Daycare, couldn't keep up with demand. 'It is quite an investment and a lot of risk for us – and not only me. To all child-care operators.' The chair of the Alberta chapter of the Association of Childcare Entrepreneurs says this latest development only makes the rollout of the provincial-federal program a larger mess. She called the program's design around space quotas and targets, rather than program quality and operator support, a fatal flaw. 'It makes it really hard to even want to be in this space. It's expensive, it's risky, and your partner in it … the federal government, the provincial government, nobody communicates with each other,' Krystal Churcher told CTV News Edmonton on Wednesday. 'I think that we're going to see a disaster in our child-care system over the next few years, where if we don't correct it now, we're going to have child care that is really declining in quality (and) we're going to have children that are put in situations where there's risk because the operators are brand new to this the field, and there's not enough support.' Alberta's new education and childcare minister, Demetrios Nicolaides, on Wednesday reiterated the province needs to address the pressure caused by the federal cap, but said he'd be gathering feedback. 'I've been minister of childcare for maybe about three, four days, so one of the first things that I'll be doing very shortly here is reaching out to many of those operators, advocacy organizations, umbrella groups, and chatting with them in a little more detail to try and get the best possible understanding of the pain points, challenges, concerns that we can work together to address them,' Nicolaides told reporters. The province says licensed for-profit programs that don't receive affordability funding can apply for wage top-up, professional development, and other kinds of funding for certified early childhood educators from the Alberta government. New for-profit spaces that don't meet this criteria won't be eligible and parents who choose an ineligible program won't see their fees reduced. The change does not affect the non-profit program stream, nor the process and criteria for licensing. It also does not affect existing programs with an Affordability Grant or Space Creation Grant. Alberta has not yet signed onto an extension of the CACWELCC. Nicolaides said he wanted to have more robust discussions about Alberta's needs during the renegotiation. 'I would suggest to operators, to parents, to the ministry, let's not worry necessarily about reworking the program we're in right now. We're stuck here until March. Let's make sure that we're actually engaging with stakeholders and creating a really solid program and plan for April 1, because people are making business decisions right now,' Churcher said. With files from CTV News Edmonton's Chelan Skulski
