![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/kitaproblem_alma_cheurfa-scaled.png\")
Image credit: Alma Cheurfa<\/p>\nImage credit: Alma Cheurfa<\/p>\n
The system has already collapsed,\u201d says 29-year-old kita worker, Cynthia Waehlisch. It\u2019s the day before she attends yet another strike demanding better conditions for her and her colleagues. You can hear the exasperation in her voice: \u201cI don\u2019t want to have these feelings. I want to look forward to going to work.\u201d But those days seem either far in the past or too far in the future to be attained. Daycares (and their workers) are more than on the brink; they\u2019ve tipped over the other side. For years, Berlin has been warned of a kita breaking point \u2013 and now we\u2019ve reached it.<\/p>\n
At Wit\u2019s End<\/p>\n
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Image credit: IMAGO \/\u00a0STPP<\/p>\n
2026 began with coordinated strikes on January 13 and 14 across public sectors. Organised by Ver.di and the German Education Union (GEW), they aimed to apply pressure during negotiations over wages and conditions. The unions demand a raise of 7% or at least \u20ac300 monthly. But according to Ver.di spokesperson Kalle Kunkel, employers have failed to present a \u201cconcrete\u201d offer in the negotiations. \u201cThey have hinted at a settlement at the level of inflation and an extra Schnapps on top (no joke),\u201d he told us. \u201cThis is, of course, completely unsatisfactory, as there is still a need to make up for the period of massive price increases.\u201d<\/p>\n
Waehlisch has attended strikes for years despite the risks involved. \u201cI was afraid of whether or not I could pay for my flat or for food. However, I thought it was important because I have the right.\u201d Symptoms of burnout are increasingly common in her work due to unsustainable working conditions. \u201cA lot of colleagues are ill after the Christmas holidays and they\u2019re saying that it\u2019s not enough to recover after two weeks,\u201d she said. \u201cI feel the same. In a few weeks I have an operation, and I\u2019m actually grateful to have a few weeks of time for recovery.\u201d<\/p>\n
The problem is, the strikes themselves are taking it out of kita workers, too. After all, it\u2019s been a long journey, and one without much support from the Berlin Senate. Finance Senator Stefan Evers labelled the movement, \u201csenseless strikes on the backs of children and parents\u201d, and that attitude continues to lambast kita workers with guilt, on top of the exhaustion of burnout from both work and strike actions.<\/p>\n
They have hinted at a settlement at the level of inflation and an extra Schnapps on top (no joke)<\/p>\n
A specific action of kita workers took place on January 27, where Waehlisch spoke. \u201cThis is the second time I\u2019m going to be speaking alone,\u201d she said before the event, admitting that the situation was becoming increasingly difficult to bear. Some of her colleagues struggle to keep up the momentum. Their employers pressure them to continue working. Consequently, some strikes have gotten smaller over time as fear over potential repercussions and a general sense of exhaustion spread: \u201cPeople are getting tired. Conditions are rough. We feel fatigue, anger, sadness and resignation.\u201d<\/p>\n
But nothing is stopping Waehlisch from striking. She\u2019ll brace Berlin\u2019s frigid streets again and again, remaining steadfast in her commitment to improving not only the lives of kita workers, but those of the children they care for daily.<\/p>\n
After all, kita workers know the importance of a stable early-learning environment. Rahel Dreyer, professor of early-years pedagogy and developmental psychology, also spoke out, in a taz article. \u201cIt is not the daycare centre visit itself that is helpful to children\u2019s development, but the quality of the pedagogical work and the relationship design experienced there,\u201d she stated. She supports the strike from a scientific point of view. \u201cThe current situation in Berlin fundamentally contradicts the basic needs and rights of children.\u201d The scientist warned that, \u201cchildren need stable caregivers and reliable structures\u201d, and that children under three are \u201cvery vulnerable because they cannot yet properly process stress\u201d.<\/p>\n
Looks Good on Paper<\/p>\n
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Image Credit: IMAGO \/\u00a0J\u00fcrgen Heinrich<\/p>\n
One major problem is the ratio of workers to children in kitas. They may meet the Senate\u2019s assumption of 5:1 on paper, but the actual numbers fall far short. Waehlisch\u2019s kita has around 75 children and \u2013 officially \u2013 15 employees. But what\u2019s on paper doesn\u2019t match the real world. \u201cIn reality we are just 10, maybe seven. Every day, there are illnesses, or someone on pregnancy leave, or with a longtime illness.\u201d<\/p>\n
This correlates with data collected by Ver.di in November, which found that the ratio of workers per child is closer to double that of official data. According to their survey, one educator is responsible for 10.7 children under three years old, and nearly 13 children over three years old.<\/p>\n
Kita workers voted to go on an indefinite strike in September 2024 to demand fairer worker-child ratios and for the statistics to reflect reality. However, despite 91.7% of Ver.di members voting in favour of the strike, Berlin\u2019s labour court blocked it, citing a rule that forbids some strike actions throughout the duration of collective bargaining agreements. According to Kunkel, a court decision this spring will determine the legality of the strikes.<\/p>\n
Of course, some Berlin politicians continue to deny the problem, despite the facts. Last fall, the Senate Department of Education rejected the \u2018kita crisis\u2019 completely. Senator Katharina G\u00fcnther-W\u00fcnsch (CDU) pushed childcare responsibilities onto the workers and unions, claiming, \u201cMany families have to organise alternative care options at short notice. Children lose reliability and stability in everyday life.\u201d She added that, \u201cthe repeated work stoppages thus affect exactly those who are dependent on a functioning public childcare.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yet it is the ongoing, daily conditions of kitas that have consistent and considerable impacts on not only the workers\u2019 wellbeing, but also those of children and parents. Frequently, these impacts are disproportionately experienced by women and FLINTA* people.<\/p>\n
The Gendered Impact<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/imago444247948-scaled.jpg\")
Image Credit: IMAGO \/\u00a0dts Nachrichtenagentur<\/p>\n
Many kitas have been forced to reduce their hours as a result of staffing shortages and illness. Those who don\u2019t take time off continue working, despite being ill, just to keep the wheel turning. \u201cYou feel like you need to be there for the kids and for your colleagues,\u201d says Waehlisch. Of course, gendered expectations play a role, given that the overwhelming majority of workers in the daycare sector are women. \u201cThere is this female socialisation that means that at all costs, you have to be there. You have to work. You have to push beyond your boundaries.\u201d<\/p>\n
This pressure has significant impacts on worker well-being. A report by the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) found high levels of anxiety and psycho-social risks in the health and social care sector. A survey of kita workers by Ver.di found that 91% viewed their work as stressful and nine workers were absent entirely. Additionally, 56% of parents reported frequent restrictions in kita opening hours. \u201cIf there are not enough people in the kindergarten because of illness, or because the system is too heavy, we have to cut the opening times for the kindergarten,\u201d explains Waehlisch.<\/p>\n
When kitas are forced to reduce their hours, it often disproportionately impacts women.<\/p>\n
There is this female socialisation that means that at all costs, you have to be there. You have to work. You have to push beyond your boundaries.<\/p>\n
The EU-OSHA report confirmed that women perform the majority of childcare at home. Therefore, when public services are cut through austerity, they are frequently forced to cut their formal working hours and provide more unpaid care. These effects often manifest in an intersectional way. \u201cThe people most hurt by the system tend to be those with a migration background and female workers.\u201d Waehlisch adds that, \u201cthis care work is also often invisible.\u201d<\/p>\n
Without an affordable option for childcare, low-income families are especially hard-pressed to find a solution, since private options are often dramatically more expensive. It manifests as more parents staying home from work, losing independence and exacerbating gender and class inequality.<\/p>\n
During the strike action, a petition with 3,000 signatures was brought to the seat of government in Berlin. Not a single politician came out to speak with the workers. Nevertheless, Waehlisch promises to continue the fight. \u201cToday the motivation is on. Now it\u2019s our exercise to bring the people on the street together and strike. I need the people around me, to bring the people on the street together and strike, to get the motivation, to be in the kindergarten, to change the system and to change the conditions.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHere, I feel more powerful.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Image credit: Alma Cheurfa The system has already collapsed,\u201d says 29-year-old kita worker, Cynthia Waehlisch. It\u2019s the day…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4012,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[18,1384,4025,358,4026],"class_list":{"0":"post-4011","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-berlin","8":"tag-berlin","9":"tag-education","10":"tag-education-learning","11":"tag-politics","12":"tag-politics-activism"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4011","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4011"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4011\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4012"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4011"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4011"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4011"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}