'The forgotten sector': ECD teachers excluded from vaccine rollout

ECD teachers are once again forgotten in the rollout for teachers to receive the Covid-19 vaccine over the coming months.

In a press release sent out by the Department of Education (DBE), following Minister Angie Motshekga's speech on the weekend, it was announced that at least 300 000 vaccines from Johnson and Johnson were earmarked for teachers to be vaccinated.

It was also mentioned that the rollout is targeting at least 582 000 people to be vaccinated in the next two weeks.

However, this does not include teachers who serve under the Department of Social Development. 

Parent24 spoke to Jennifer McQuillan, an ECD owner, and co-founder of ECD Owners of SA, who runs the campaign HELP SA ECDS on Facebook.

McQuillan has been asking why ECD teachers were not included in this rollout. She says, "ECD centre teachers are teachers. Is this not for teachers!? Does it state anywhere that this is only for DBE teachers and support staff and not DSD teachers and staff? If so, why the discrimination? We all work with children."

Read: Unhappy ECD practitioners call on parliament for reform

Another let down

McQuillan tells Parent24 that the ECD sector is "always forgotten" regarding essential matters.

"Schools reopened last year after the hard lockdown. We had to take the DSD to court to reopen," she explains. 

Another let down was with the government stimulus package where DSD had a very complicated and confusing system based online and led to most principals who do not have wifi unable to receive the package, added McQuillan.

Do teachers matter? 

The vaccine rollout is yet another setback for the ECD teachers and staff, leaving the ECD teachers and staff members wondering if they matter as teachers.

McQuillan believes that "It is not about who you are hired by (a Primary School or an ECD Centre), it is about the ROLE you play in society for the vaccines.... so why are teachers and support staff who work in ECD Centres not included in this vaccine roll out?"

Their plea as ECD owners and teachers is that ECDs should also be included in the vaccine rollout and be valued just like the teachers from private and public schools are valued and are taken care of by the Department of Basic Education.

To get answers, the ECD owners and teachers wrote a letter to the Minister of Social Development, Lindiwe Zulu.

Also read: The silence where ECD centres are concerned is very loud 

The letter reads as follows:

Dear Minister Lindiwe Zulu,