Former COTA chief Ian Yates in 2018 . Picture : Kym Smith / NewsCorp Australia .
Wage decision
Aged care pay rise leaves ‘ questions unanswered ’
By Elise Hartevelt
While the majority of the aged care industry has welcomed the interim decision to raise wages by 15 per cent , sector advocates want more emphasis on recruitment and a pay raise for all staff employed in the sector .
In November , the Fair Work Commission handed down their 300-page interim decision to increase wages for direct aged care workers .
Former chief of aged care advocacy group COTA Ian Yates said that while it ’ s a positive development , questions around the implementation period and a pay raise for indirect staff remain unanswered .
“ That it ’ s an interim decision shows that the Commission recognised the urgency of the workforce issues ,” Yates told Aged Care Insite .
“ We hope that they will soon work out the timing and also a pay rise for the workers this wage increase doesn ’ t apply to .
“ Because all people working in the industry are important .”
The Commission ’ s recent decision left out administrative workers , allied health staff and other lifestyle employees working in residential care homes .
The high-profile wage case was also backed by the federal Labor , which put money aside in its recent budget to cover the costs .
The Commission called a hearing with the government on November 22 nd
to consult with the sector about what measures Labor should push for in the coming year .
“ The government has made an absolute commitment to fund , so we expect it to support all the associated costs ,” Yates said .
“ But we ’ re hopeful it will be more than 15 in the final decision .
“ We thought , per the consensus statement , 25 per cent was a reasonable claim .”
The Health Services Union has been pushing for a 25 per cent wage increase for aged care workers , which would raise hourly wages by $ 5 .
It ’ s projected that up to 139,000 aged care workers will leave the sector by 2026 .
According to reports , aged care will need a steady influx of roughly 35,000 staff each year to fill the growing workforce shortage .
Australia ’ s care workforce heavily relies on overseas recruitment , with an estimated 37 per cent of staff originally coming from abroad .
Yet , people coming from overseas potentially face issues receiving a valid visa on which they can stay and work in Australia .
Home Affairs Minister Clare O ’ Neil said the nation ’ s immigration was ‘ in a state of disrepair ’ with ‘ massive visa queues ’ hindering people from entering and finding employment in Australia .
O ’ Neill commented after the Australian Federal Police briefed her on reports
“ All people working in the industry are important
revealing human trafficking and workers being exploited .
While Yates said he has not heard that to be commonplace in the industry , he did highlight a significant issue of people applying for permanent visas while working on temporary arrangements .
“ We need to focus on targeted recruitment with priority processing of visas ,” Yates said . “ From the Pacific , India and the Philippines , all countries with fewer language barriers and comparable qualifications .”
During heavy Covid restrictions , it ’ s estimated around half a million temporary migrants are currently living in Australia .
The nation ’ s workforce is expected to be short of 600,000 overseas workers , including aged care workers , that would otherwise have arrived .
Other overseas workers may be waiting an average of 812 days before receiving a final decision about immigration on their visa application .
Yates said that speeding up the visa system and visa priorities will have a positive impact .
“ Aged care should be a high priority ,” Yates said .
“ I know every industry is saying they ’ re a high priority , but in hospitality , it ’ s an inconvenience .
“ In aged care , it ’ s a significant problem for the most vulnerable in our community .” ■ agedcareinsite . com . au 13