As a mother of three boys under the age of five and an early childhood educator, I appreciate the Government’s support for infant caregiving and work-life harmony, and welcome Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s desire to build a “Singapore Made For Families” (PM Lee urges Singaporeans to have more children, and to do so earlier, Feb 9).

However, I find that the number of government-paid childcare leave (GPCL) days does not reflect these aspirations.

The current scheme gives each parent six days of GPCL if a couple have a child below seven years old.

To support families with more than one young child, however, childcare leave should take into account the number of children a couple have who are below this age.

Childcare centres, which many working parents depend on for support, close eight days annually. This consumes most of the childcare leave of a working couple, leaving them with just four days out of their 12 days of paid leave to care for sick children, despite research showing that pre-schoolers tend to fall sick as many as eight to 12 times annually.

In reality, parents with young children often have to deal with kids taking turns falling ill numerous times each year.

It is commendable that the Government’s Baby Bonus scheme reflects the needs of families with multiple children, but support for having more children should not cease at birth.

Expecting young parents with children to use up their annual leave and even resort to taking unpaid leave to care for sick children runs counter to the “Singapore Made For Families” aspiration.

Adjusting GPCL to reflect the needs of larger families would help reduce the stress of caring for their children when they fall ill, and would encourage couples to consider having more children.

Ferninda Patrycia