Childcare says parents must pay more PARENTS face $10-a-day fee increases for daycare as a result of wage rises promoted by the Federal Government, the commercial childcare industry claims. But Childcare Minister Kate Ellis said no centres would need to raise their fees. The nation's biggest childcare chain, Goodstart, has called on the government to extend wage subsidies to all childcare centres on a permanent basis. The government has announced a $300m grants scheme for selected childcare centres, to pay for staff wage rises ranging from $3 to $5 an hour next year. But many centres are likely to miss out on the money, and the grants will end after two years. Australian Childcare Alliance president Gwynn Bridge said centres that missed out on grants would be under pressure to match the pay rises, to stop staff leaving. Such centres would have to charge parents about $10 a day more to cover the higher wage costs, she said. But Ms Ellis insisted there was "no reason for any centre to increase fees." "Any approved centre that wants access to the (wages) fund can apply," she said. A spokeswoman for Early Childhood Minister Peter Garrett said an advisory panel of childcare employers, workers and industry groups would draw up guidelines for the grants scheme. She said union membership for workers would not be compulsory. Only centres that are already approved for government fee subsidies would be eligible to apply. "Centres who do not apply for or receive grants are not obliged to provide the corresponding wage increases," the spokeswoman said. That is a decision for centre operators. Goodstart chief executive Julia Davison called on the government to pay for wage increases in all Australian childcare centres. "I strongly commend the government for putting some money on the table for professional wages, but we would like it to be on an ongoing basis, and for everyone," she said. The reality is there's no employer out there that can afford to significantly increase wages for early learning and childcare staff without passing the cost on to parents. Ms Davison said Goodstart paid junior staff $17 an hour, and an average of $21 an hour for workers with the lowest qualifications. "We would love to pay our staff more but families need to be able to afford to access our services," she said. It's extremely likely we will apply for a (government) grant but we need to understand the conditions before we decide if it's a sensible thing to do. Goodstart employs 15,000 staff but only 2000 work full-time in its 650 childcare centres. The United Voice childcare union estimates workers will receive $114 to $198 a week extra, depending on their qualification, after the pay rise. But Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young claims that at least 70 per cent of childcare workers will miss out. The Greens want the government to provide $200m over four years for capital grants to build or expand non-profit childcare centres, to cut waiting lists and reduce fees. Lienna Mandis, who owns four childcare centres in western Sydney and one in Bomaderry on the NSW south coast, said she would have to charge parents $5 to $10 a day extra if she missed out on a grant but gave workers the pay rise to stop them leaving. "If I've got to put wages up, someone's got to bear the costs and inevitably that will go to families," she said.