Putin's Plan for Late-Closing Kindergartens Faces Pushback

At a meeting with the government, Vladimir Putin proposed extending kindergarten operating hours until 8:00 p.m. so that mothers can return to work more quickly after maternity leave. Parents interviewed by MSK1.RU supported the idea, but kindergarten teachers expressed doubts. We look into what might have to be sacrificed for the comfort of moms and dads.

Who Supports and Who Opposes

Diana, a mother of two from Moscow, supported the president«s initiative. She told MSK1.RU that she works until 7:00 p.m., but the kindergarten closes at 6:45 p.m. — she has to leave work early.

“Fortunately, my bosses are accommodating, and it takes me at most five minutes to get to the kindergarten, but I am always the last parent to pick up my child. Most often, he is already dressed and standing by the door. I can«t imagine how I would pick up my child if the kindergarten was far from work,” Diana shared.

In her opinion, the ideal kindergarten hours would be until 8:00 p.m., or at least until 7:30 p.m. She recalled another kindergarten that closed as early as 5:45 p.m., forcing her to leave work early or find someone to pick up her daughters.

Alexander, a Moscow resident also raising two children, approves of the proposal to extend kindergarten hours.

“Many people work and can«t pick up their child on time because the kindergarten closes early. If they also provide dinner for the children — that would be just wonderful,” he noted.

At the same time, he wondered whether teachers« salaries would be increased. This concerns the teachers themselves as well.

For example, Olga, a kindergarten teacher from Moscow, pointed out in a conversation with MSK1.RU that kindergarten staff also have children and personal lives.

“How will the work of a teacher who works two shifts without a partner be paid? No matter how much you give a person, it«s never enough. And some parents will also be late picking up their children by 8:00 p.m., so then extend the shift until 9:00 p.m.? I do not support the idea; there can be no compromises,” she stated.

What Public Figures Think

Larisa Tutova, head of the public organization “Vospitateli Rossii” (Educators of Russia), acknowledges that teachers may not agree to work longer hours, as they are already overloaded. As she explained in a comment to Izvestia, the workload in kindergartens is no more than 36 hours per week, and extending hours would require additional pay — which would fall on local budgets.

“We are intensively working to reduce the bureaucratic burden on educators, but at the same time we are ready to extend their working day. There is no logic in this. That means we will have to introduce a new staff position at 0.15 rate. Will we find enough teachers? Even now there is a shortage of personnel in kindergartens,” Tutova said.

In turn, Olga Vasilyeva, president of the Russian Academy of Education, advised educators in a conversation with TASS to look to the experience of the USSR. She recalled that kindergartens had groups that operated longer than usual.

“Back then, they could combine children from several groups into one — for an extended day program that closed later. In the USSR, they even organized special 24-hour stay groups for children whose parents worked night shifts,” Vasilyeva stated.

Moscow«s children»s rights commissioner Olga Yaroslavskaya also addressed the topic. She believes the discussed measure would be real support for parents, but warns: no mother should feel pressured to return to work more quickly.

“A child should not «adapt» to adult decisions. Childhood is a time for closeness, peace, and love, and every family has the right to choose its own rhythm,” Yaroslavskaya wrote on Telegram.

The Ministry of Education reported that kindergartens set their own schedules and can change them at the request of parents. Currently, most children (91.9%) attend full-day groups, which most often operate from 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Russia also has 24-hour stay groups, attended by 15 thousand children.

Earlier, a kindergarten teacher from Omsk told our colleagues from NGS55.RU why teachers so often quit kindergartens. Read about what even those preschool educators who love their jobs suffer from.