When Work is Decent, Children’s Champions Flourish

Early childhood development (ECD) practitioners shape the earliest experiences of young children, yet they often work in conditions that go unexamined and undervalued. A new study is changing that.

Researchers surveyed 436 ECD practitioners across two South African provinces, exploring three interconnected ideas: decent work — fair pay, safe conditions, and job security; capabilities — the practical freedoms people need to do their jobs meaningfully; and flourishing — genuine emotional, psychological, and social well-being.

Four capability profiles emerged: robust, relational, knowledge and skills, and weak. Practitioners with robust capabilities were significantly more likely to experience decent work and reported higher well-being across all three dimensions. Those with weak capability sets faced compounded disadvantage — less decent work, and less organisational support for balancing professional and personal life.

Across all groups, decent work was consistently linked to well-being. How practitioners are treated at work shapes how fully they can show up for the children in their care.

The study’s implications for policy are direct: well-being initiatives that address both working conditions and the real capabilities of practitioners in vulnerable positions are not optional. They are a foundation. When practitioners are given the conditions to thrive, everyone in their care benefits.

Read the article here: Ragadu, S.C., & Rothmann, S. (2023). Decent work, capabilities and flourishing at work. Mental Health and Social Inclusion, 27(4), 317–339. https://doi.org/10.1108/MHSI-05-2023-0054

Watch a video about the research here: https://vimeo.com/1186634694