Low wages and federal budget cuts are squeezing the nation’s care workforce and making life harder for families who depend on child care or home care services, according to AFSCME members who participated in a national summit about the caregiving crisis.
“Our workforces deserve to be paid living wages and respect for the work they do. They are truly saving lives,” said Astrid Zuniga, president of United Domestic Workers (UDW/AFSCME Local 3930) and a home care worker in California.
Zuniga was part of the daylong summit on Tuesday in Washington hosted by Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif.). Members of Congress, care workers, union leaders and policy experts discussed ways to invest more in the people who provide care to children, the elderly and the disabled.
“When we talk about the future of the American economy, caregiving must be part of that conversation because supporting caregivers isn’t just the right thing to do, it’s one of the smartest economic investments we can actually make,” Gomez said. “When caregivers are supported, our economy is stronger.”
Gomez is chair of the Congressional Dads Caucus and a former AFSCME staff member.
Linda McPherson, a member of AFSCME District Council 37 and president of Local 95, works in Head Start in New York and spoke about the need for higher wages for child care providers, many of whom meet the same qualifications as public school teachers but are paid much less.
“We cannot hire (Head Start) teachers because of the salaries that are being paid,” McPherson said.
Zuniga said cuts in federal subsidies for child care and cuts to Medicaid threaten programs that make care affordable for working families.
“We need policies that will ensure that we are investing in their workforce, that we are making it a desirable workforce. Benefits, retirement would be awesome. Just a little bit over minimum wage would be awesome,” Zuniga said. “We really need solid policies to come from the federal government in order to make that happen.”
The National Summit on the Caregiving Crisis gave unionized care workers a prime opportunity to speak directly to lawmakers on Capitol Hill about policies that would benefit workers, families and the American economy.