I refer to last Sunday's article, 'Many infant care centres but no vacancies'.

Even as parents frantically search for infant day-care centres for their children, such centres are frantically looking for teachers.

Hiring - and retaining - good teachers is not easy. The turnover rate in this industry is high because of the low pay, long working hours, and low status and recognition.

Yet the requirements and demands of the job have been rising - along with the turnover rate.

I support the move by the Government to build more centres, but will we be able to get more teachers when we already have difficulty retaining the current ones?

It would be a mistake to first promise the public more such centres, only to realise later that there are not enough teachers.

Hazel Sim (Ms)

This article was first published in The Straits Times.