Source: Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi
Today’s Ministerial Advisory Group report on aged care will only deliver the system older New Zealanders need if it comes with real pay equity for the workforce that delivers it.
“More than ever, as our population ages, we need to get this system right and built to last, but the key to that is a workforce that is fairly paid and protected for the vital work those caring for the elderly do,” said Fleur Fitzsimons, National Secretary for the Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi.
The PSA is the union representing thousands of workers caring for the elderly in their own homes.
“We support the vision of a properly integrated aged care system that helps people age well in their own homes. But the report itself admits a more integrated system will not be achievable ‘without a sustainable and capable workforce to deliver it’.
“The Government commissioned this report after scrapping pay equity, and then excluded workforce pay and conditions from this review’s scope.
“You can’t have it both ways. If a well-trained, fairly paid workforce is critical to making this reform work, and the report says it is, then pay equity and secure employment must be part of the conversation.
“We’re calling on all parties this election to commit to restoring and maintaining the legally established pay equity rate for home support workers. Anything less isn’t reform, it’s a repeat of the same underfunding that’s driven workers out of the sector for years.
“We need home support workers more than ever, and they need a secure career path so more stay and more join this vital workforce to care for our rapidly ageing population in their homes.
“But home support workers are employed in a precarious way, chasing broken shifts with no guarantee of hours. That has to change to a model that delivers fairly paid, guaranteed shift work, not piecemeal rostering that leaves workers unable to plan a life or build a career.
“We welcome the recommendation to extend Part 6A of the Employment Relations Act to care and support workers, which protects workers’ jobs and conditions when contracts change hands between providers. The PSA has already settled cases confirming this coverage, but the Government needs to make sure it is never in doubt.
“On worker’s travel, the PSA has already had to take legal action under the Wages Protection Act because home support workers were being short-changed on the true cost of driving between clients. The report’s proposal to modernise in-between travel is a step in the right direction, but it must properly cover the real cost of vehicle use.
“We support a genuine workforce strategy for care and support workers, but it needs to be developed in real partnership with unions, not just consultation after the decisions are made.
“This is a significant report, and it deserves genuine engagement from every party and that means commitment to funding the system properly and guaranteeing workers see the benefit. It has never been more vital to get this right.”
The Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi (https://www.psa.org.nz/) is Aotearoa New Zealand’s largest trade union, representing and supporting more than 95,000 workers across central government, state-owned enterprises, local councils, health boards and community groups.