CMG reform: a “social bomb” for parents and childcare workers

A change presented as a simplification, but which generates losers

CMG, which helps parents finance their children’s care (childcare, home care, etc.), is reviewing the way its aid is calculated. The announced goal was to harmonize the systems, reduce unfair differences and make the system more readable. But in reality many parents and professionals report significant “financial losses”.

According to the story of Angélique, a nanny who started the petition, “thousands of parents are employers [sont] in great difficulty faced with the new financial burdens” linked to this reform.

She points to increases in employer contributions that some families can no longer afford, which weakens childcare contracts or even makes them unaffordable.

The petition calls on the government to review the system in consultation with representatives of families and professionals. The text insists: childcare must remain accessible without leading to an increase in precariousness.

UNAF, for its part, invites parents to testify about the impacts they have experienced and to report critical situations to inform future evaluation.

A petition as a collective cry of alarm

A week after its launch, the petition has already reached almost 5,000 signatures. In their comments, childcare workers and parents describe very concrete situations: canceled contracts, reduced hours, wages questioned, insecurity about their professional future.

A single parent would have lost the extracurricular contract, not being able to cope with the additional costs linked to the reform. Many professionals fear that the profession will become too precarious to be profitable in the long term.

But some voices also cite cases of less disadvantaged situations, where the gain would be neutral or even positive – depending on the number of hours, the structure of on-call services, etc. The dominant feeling, however, is that of a poorly calibrated and unfair system for many families.

An evaluation expected within 12-18 months

In the face of growing protests, the government continues to defend the reform and promises future adjustments. Pauline Domingo, of the DGCS, recalls that the effectiveness of the new system will be evaluated within a window of between 12 and 18 months. It also mentions a possible gradual increase in average childcare worker salaries.

But this calendar is already raising criticism: for Families experiencing losses today and waiting more than a year for adjustments may seem like a promise too far away.

A representative of the personal services of the CGT observes that the reform automatically creates losers – which amount to 42%. While calling for caution regarding the data disseminated on social networks, he recognizes the latent discomfort.

What parents can do to protect themselves

At this stage, there is little room to reverse the immediate effects, but a few things can help:

• Testify at the UNAF or via request to document real situations (complaints, loss of contract, etc.).
• Check with the nanny or childcare service the new calculations applied and request simulations.
• Consider other forms of care (daycare, nursery) if these remain more stable or less penalized.
• Follow communications from family associations, trade unions and early childhood facilities to be informed of developments.

Source: Madmoizelle