Stuttgart (dpa / lsw) - In the debate about the lack of staff and reduced opening hours in day-care centers, from the point of view of Prime Minister Winfried Kretschmann, the municipalities are primarily in demand. "It's their job, not mine," said Kretschmann on Tuesday. The municipalities decided on the staff and also on the opening hours of the facilities. The country can support that - but not magic.
Of course it is "dramatic" for the parents if the childcare times are restricted, so the municipalities have to weigh up what the right measures are. "I can't conjure up the educators any more than anyone else," said Kretschmann.
The state supports the municipalities wherever it can - from a campaign to promote the profession to training capacities. The number of daycare places and the payment of the educators have increased enormously in recent years. But the municipalities must take the problem seriously, warned Kretschmann.
In Tübingen, the municipal council decided last week that numerous daycare centers in the city would have to reduce their opening hours in the future due to a lack of staff. This gets many parents into trouble, with a total of 50 groups in the municipal daycare centers closing at 1:15 p.m. In other cities, too, individual day-care centers have announced that they will soon have to close earlier.
