Canadian data from 1998 showed that over 98% of child care centre (CCC) staff were female and 45% were under the age of 30. Staff had a high level of experience; 60% had worked in the field over 5 years and 71% of teaching staff held an early childhood education (ECE) credential. Hourly wages varied between provinces and territories. The national average hourly rate was $11.62 for a teacher and $9.59 for an assistant. Only 74% of staff reported paid sick days, which averaged 7.6 days/year. Even with these challenges, a high proportion of staff reported experiencing enjoyment and reward from their work. Twenty percent reported feeling disrespected by some other professionals [5] .