维多利亚大学米切尔研究所发布报告指出，澳大利亚市场驱动的托儿所扩展导致工作人员流动率高、运营商更替频繁、儿童安全风险上升[1]。自2013年以来，40.7%的营利性托儿所已更换运营商，其中部分更换超过5次[1]。与此同时，托儿所位置数量从约40万增至约73万，其中私营营利性提供商占长托儿所的74%[1]。
报告指出，市场化模式对托儿服务质量造成了直接冲击。教育工作者中位数时薪仅为34.30澳元，与清洁工薪资相当，远低于小学教师的62澳元[1]。人员流动率同样令人担忧，52%的托儿所工作岗位任期不足一年[1]。
米切尔研究所主任彼得·赫利教授表示："这些方法固化了低工资和高流动率的缺陷，奖励那些能以最便宜方式提供托儿服务同时达到最低标准的提供商"[1]。大型营利性私营提供商（超过25家中心）的执法行为记录可能性是非营利或社区提供商的三倍多[1]，进一步凸显了安全隐患。
报告建议将早期教育视为公共基础设施进行资助。联邦政府2025-26年用于托儿补贴的资金为169亿澳元[1]。
A report from the University of Melbourne's Mitchell Institute has identified structural vulnerabilities in Australia's market-oriented childcare system, linking commercial expansion to elevated staff turnover and potential child safety concerns.[1] Since 2013, 40.7% of for-profit childcare centers have changed operators, with some facilities experiencing more than five ownership transitions.[1] The research reveals that 52% of childcare workforce positions have tenure lasting less than one year, according to Australian Taxation Office data from 2022-23.[1]
The report attributes these instabilities to wage pressures that undermine workforce stability. Educators in the sector earn a median hourly rate of $34.30—equivalent to cleaners' wages but substantially below the $62 hourly rate for primary school teachers.[1] This economic disparity, combined with the growth of private for-profit providers who now account for 74% of long-day childcare places, has created a system that prioritizes cost minimization over quality.[1] Mitchell Institute Director Professor Peter Hurley stated: "These approaches have entrenched the defects of low wages and high turnover, rewarding providers who can deliver childcare in the cheapest way possible while meeting only the minimum standards."[1]
Enforcement records further illustrate the risks associated with market-driven models, with large for-profit private providers operating more than 25 centers facing compliance action at a rate more than three times higher than nonprofit or community-based operators.[1] The federal government has allocated $16.9 billion in childcare subsidies for 2025-26.[1]