A male childcare worker has made the heartbreaking confession about why he had to leave the job he loved.
Nick*, 26, is a childcare worker in QLD. Here he talks to Kidspot about the ongoing discrimination he faces as a male working with children.
“I was a single child until my little brother came along when I was eight. I took a very active role in helping with him because I was that bit older. We played Lego, ran around, I loved spending time with him and have always been fascinated in watching children develop and learn.
At University, I worked part-time at a childcare centre while I was doing my degree in education. It offered good, flexible morning and early evening work that didn’t clash with my classes.
It was a great casual job and I absolutely loved it.
Most of the parents who got to know me were great. They’d come over and chat when they came to collect their kids, I’d tell them what their kids had been up to, it was all very rewarding.
But, at one point, I had an awful experience of discrimination that changed my outlook on life and made me totally rethink a future in working with children.
I was working in a prep centre, in the kindy with 2-4 year olds. The kids were all having a nap, all was peaceful, and it seemed like an average day.
The day his world turned
A pair of parents walked past and clocked me, just sitting there.
The next thing I knew, they’d reported me to the police for touching their child inappropriately.
It hit me like a bus.
They started an active campaign against me, even though I’d done nothing wrong.
They put posters of my face with my name and where I worked, saying I was a child molester.
It was plastered everywhere around traffic lights and in the streets. They spread lies about me throughout the community.
I had to go for an interview with child protection services. I was terrified. I knew I’d done absolutely nothing wrong, but if I were found guilty of something it would affect my entire life.
I was really freaking out, it was horrendous.
I had to answer a load of questions but I gave straight, honest answers because I knew that the whole childcare centre worked with careful guidelines; I’d never been alone with children and never acted inappropriately in any way whatsoever.
"I felt like I’d been thrown under a bus for no reason."
I was only 21; I had no idea about the world.
Two weeks later I had to be moved to another childcare centre. They said the claims had been proven to be false. They’d interviewed the parents and it turned out they’d put words in the little girl’s mouth.
I asked why, and was told, “Because the parents don’t believe men should be working in childcare.”
So, I moved to another centre and was absolutely crushed, to be honest. I loved those kids and they loved me.
I had a huge moment of clarity; this is the way society is now.
Men are judged and the prejudice is fierce.
The truth was, if I stayed in this line of work, every time I would move to a new centre I’d have to prove myself to be trustworthy. I’d have to start all over again.
Ultimately, it would be just a matter of time before something awful like that happened again. And, it would only get more difficult as I got older.
The stigma around men gets worse.
I saw a woman on the news recently who doesn’t let men babysit her kids. That’s the kind of discrimination I’m talking about.
Children need men around in their life too. We’re not all monsters; some of us just love kids and want to be a positive influence.
It’s a really negative side effect of feminist ideology - and it’s getting worse. We need to stop and think about what we’re teaching our children because they do pick up on it.
Judging on gender doesn’t make any sense.
Male teachers tell me, ‘Be very careful, anything you say can be used against you. You need to protect yourself.’
Our thinking has gone off track, you can’t fight inequality with counter discrimination; it doesn’t work that way.
That’s it for me, I’ve decided to pursue a career in a different field.”
* Nick's name has been changed to protect his identity.
Parent who false accusation this men should be imprisoned for many years.