By 2018, 1.2 million direct-care workers are projected to be women age 55 and over — a jump from 22 to nearly 30 percent of the nation’s direct-care workforce in just ten years.
Older Than the Overall Female Workforce
In 2008, 22 percent of direct-care workers were age 55 and older compared to 18 percent of female workers in the overall US workforce.
Resources
Where Older Direct-Care Workers Work
By Employment Setting
Older direct-care workers are more likely to be employed in home care than in any other setting.
Nearly 40 percent of older direct-care workers report employment in home care settings, compared to a fifth who report working in nursing facilities and 15 percent who work in hospitals.
By Job Title
Personal care aides tend to be significantly older than nurse aides.
Approximately 28 percent of Personal Care Aides are age 55 years and older compared to 19 percent of Nursing Aides, Orderlies, and Home Health Aides.
“In an aging population, the elderly are increasingly being taken care of by the elderly. Professional caregivers — almost all of them women — are one of the fastest-growing segments of the American work force, and also one of the grayest.” — Read the NY Times article
