Childcare workers stage International Women's Day strike over gender pay gap

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Sorry, this video has expired Video: Childcare workers to walk off job (ABC News)

More than 1,000 childcare workers have walked off the job around the country this afternoon as part of a campaign for higher wages in the female-dominated sector, the early childhood union says.

Key points: Strike to take place at 3.20pm today

Expected to be the biggest early childhood education walk-off in Australian history

Taking place on International Women's Day to highlight belief that poor pay is directly related to child care being a female-dominated sector

A huge crowd of supporters marched in Brunswick in Melbourne. The strike was expected to be the biggest early childhood education walk-off in Australian history.

"[This] represents the time women in Australia effectively start working for free because of the persistent gender pay imbalance," an online statement from United Voice read.

Margaret Carey, the director at the Clovelly Child Care Centre in Sydney, said the action had been planned to coincide with International Women's Day, "so that it is clear we believe that our poor pay is directly related to it being a female-dominated sector".

Ms Carey said educators were angry they earned $20 an hour — just above the minimum wage — and they want the Government to take responsibility.

"That is a wage for a certificate III. We have a diploma-level training. That is only $23 an hour," she said.

"An early childhood teacher comes in at $25 an hour. If we want to reflect the true professionalism involved in our job now, we need to pay it properly, we are the working poor."

Lyndal Ryan, also from United Voice, said parents were sympathetic to the cause.

"They understand that the early educators have done everything reasonable in terms of asking nicely," she said.

"This is 2017, it's a ridiculous problem that we still have."

Ms Carey said the industrial action did not come lightly.

"We didn't take this action lightly. We did it with the full support of our parent management committee and our parents in general," she said.

"[Families] are our biggest supporters because they know firsthand the job we do and true value of it."

Topics: community-and-society, family-and-children, child-care, women, australia

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