PHInational.org

According to the latest employment projections, a million more direct‐care workers will be needed by 2016 to meet the demand for services from the growing number of Americans over age 65. Our long‐term system faces a huge recruitment challenge – a challenge made more difficult by the poor quality of many direct‐care jobs.

The vast majority of frontline workers earn wages below $9.85 per hour and nearly one in three lack health insurance coverage. Additionally direct‐care workers often face inadequate training, lack of stable hours, and limited opportunity for advancement.

According to the PHI Chart Book on State Wages, real wages for personal and home care aides fell by four percent from 2000 to 2006. In 29 states, average hourly wages for aides were below 200 percent of the Federal Poverty Line wage for full-time workers who live alone — low enough to qualify for many state and federal assistance programs.

This poor job quality fuels the long–term care industry’s high turnover rates (70% annually in nursing homes and estimated at 50% in home care) as direct‐care workers leave the field for better compensated, more stable work.

Charts

United States: Median Hourly Wages for Personal & Home Care Aides

Resources:

• PHI National Wage and Benefits Policy Agenda (pdf)
• State Chart Book on Wages for Personal and Home Care Aides, 1999-2006 (pdf)
• PHI Blog Entries on Rising Cost of Gas and Home Care Workers
• Occupational Projections for Direct-Care Workers, 2006-2016 (pdf)
• The 9 Essential Elements of a Quality Job