Peer-reviewed article
Low pay but still we stay: Retention in early childhood education and care
Paula K. McDonald, Karen J. Thorpe, Susan Lee Irvine ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study examines why early childhood educators stay in their roles despite low pay, challenging conditions and limited career progression, rather than focusing on why they leave. High staff turnover in the sector threatens service quality and children's outcomes. Understanding retention factors can help improve workforce stability and inform policy responses in Australia and internationally.
Key points
- Early childhood education has turnover rates as high as 30%, driven partly by low remuneration barely meeting minimum wage and better-paid alternatives in other sectors
- A skilled and engaged early childhood workforce is critical for children's positive life trajectories and broader economic and social productivity
- The study uniquely reverses the focus to understand motivations for staying rather than leaving the profession
- High staff turnover and skill loss limit achievement of optimal standards and outcomes in the sector
Limitations
The document is a metadata abstract and does not provide detailed findings, sample characteristics, methodology or specific retention factors identified. We cannot determine the actual results or conclusions from the research.
Abstract
A professional, skilled and engaged early childhood workforce is critical to economic and social productivity and positive life trajectories for children. Yet high staff turnover, skill loss and unmet standards of staff qualification pervade the sector, limiting optimal outcomes. For many early childhood educators, alternatives of better paid and less challenging sources of employment are available in other employment sectors, a fact that explains turnover rates as high as 30%. However, this study reverses the emphasis on why early childhood educators leave the sector and asks instead ‘Why do so many stay?'. This question is a significant one when it is considered that the remuneration of educators in early childhood barely meets minimum wage thresholds, and that they face challenging working conditions and few opportunities for career progression. The findings of the study contribute to an understanding of retention in early childhood education and care occupations specifically, and in feminised, low-paid occupational groups more broadly. The study also informs policy and strategy responses to low retention in the early childhood sector in Australia and internationally.