27 March 2006
Minimum Wage Increase Won’t Fix Pitifully Low Pay In Aged Care
“While any increase to the minimum wage is good, today’s increase won’t fix the huge recruitment and retention problems
in residential aged care, or deliver the aged care workforce fair pay,” said New Zealand Nurses Organisation CEO Geoff
Annals today.
“The average pay for caregivers is less than $11 and many will get a pay rise today because they are paid less than
$10.25,”he said.
“These workers provide hands on care for our most vulnerable sick and frail in dementia hospitals and rest homes, often
in disgraceful conditions and through the night and weekends for no extra pay.”
Geoff Annals said in recent negotiations Australian-owned wealthy corporate Guardian Healthcare was forced to up its pay
offer of $10 and hour for caregivers to $10.25 because of the increase in the minimum wage, but $10.25 was still a
pittance.
“No wonder turnover in the sector is around 40 percent and the average age of the female-dominated workforce is around
47.”
Geoff Annals said the two things required to fix low pay in aged care were adequate government funding and wealthy
corporate employers dipping into their profits to pay a fair wage.
“An immediate increase in the minimum wage to $12 would certainly also make a difference,” he said. “But $12 is still
too low and this work is worth at least as much as the $16 an hour caregivers get for working in public hospitals.”
“Caregivers are amongst the lowest paid New Zealanders and they do one of the hardest jobs, caring for our elderly at
their most vulnerable time,” he said.
Geoff Annals said it was in the interests of all New Zealanders that caregivers were decently paid.
“That is the only way to ensure we have quality care in our rest homes, private hospitals and dementia care homes,” he
said.
ENDS