2025-09-25
Revelations that executives at major for-profit childcare companies, including G8 and Affinity, pocketed bonuses worth hundreds of thousands of dollars despite repeated safety and quality breaches are yet more evidence that the for-profit model is failing families.
Bosses at Australia’s largest for-profit providers received pay rises and bonuses of up to $500,000 last year even as centres under their watch were cited for multiple safety breaches.
The Greens have consistently called out the failings of the for-profit childcare system. Currently, only 13% of private providers are rated as “exceeding quality standards”, compared to almost a third of public and not-for-profit centres.
The Greens have secured a Senate Inquiry into the safety and quality of early learning which is examining how the system, including the lawed childcare subsidy, props up private cowboy operators and undermines safe, high-quality care.
Lines attributable to Australian Greens spokesperson for early childhood education and care, Senator Steph Hodgins-May:
“As a parent of young kids myself, families are right to be outraged that executives are pocketing bonuses for hitting short-term KPIs while private providers charge parents through the roof and still deliver lower standards of care.
“These operators treat children like line items on a balance sheet , chasing enrolments and shareholder returns at the expense of safe, high-quality care. And the evidence shows kids are being put at risk.
“Trust in the early learning system is at an all-time low, and these bonuses are further proof the for-profit model prioritises profit over quality care and education.
“Leaving early learning to the market is both flawed and dangerous. That’s why we’ve secured a vital Senate Inquiry into early learning safety and quality, which is now underway.
“Ultimately, we need a universal, affordable system that treats early learning as a public good, not a private commodity.
“At the very least, money going into executive bonuses should instead be spent lifting quality and properly paying educators.”