Pay gap stokes fears of childcare worker drain to big cities

Municipalities neighboring major cities such as Tokyo and Osaka are increasingly concerned about losing childcare workers to better-paying jobs in the metropolises, prompting them to offer wage supplements and seek national action to narrow the gap.About 60 percent of childcare workers who responded to a Chiba Prefecture survey released in March said they wanted to work in Tokyo. Among those, almost 70 percent cited pay and benefits as reasons.Respondents also expressed frustration with their pay. "The pay does not match the workload at all," one said, while another said, "We are entrusted …READ FULL ARTICLE