The rallies, which plan to highlight the low wages of early childhood professionals, will take place on Saturday June 6.

Organised by the Association of Childhood Professionals (ACP), the protest aims to highlight the need for improved pay for early childhood professionals as a priority issue for Government.

ACP Chairperson Marian Quinn said early childhood education and care is a vital public service, on par with primary education, yet it is not accorded the same respect and level of investment. Ireland currently spends 0.2pc of GDP on the early childhood sector, compared to an OECD average of 0.7pc.

Read the full story on the Irish Independent Website