Aged care workers carved out of new wage boost

A pay discrepancy for workers between aged care services has blindsided providers.

​The largest not-for-profit aged care provider has warned the Albanese government’s new wages policy will create a two-tiered system that will disadvantage workers who provide part-time care for elderly Australians living at home.

The country’s largest not-for-profit aged-care provider says the Albanese government’s new wages policy will create a two-tiered system that will disadvantage workers who provide part-time care for elderly Australians living at home.

Uniting Care Australia says a portion of workers providing care for elderly Australians at home will receive a smaller pay rise than those working in residential aged care, disincentivising workers to provide homecare services despite surging demand.

The pay discrepancy for workers between aged-care services has blindsided providers, after Labor promised a 15 per cent increase in wages for aged-care workers across both residential and homecare services.

Under Labor’s policy, the wages of 5000 workers who specialise in “entry-level” support for older people would receive less government funding than wages for workers providing more intense levels of homecare support or nurses in residential aged care.

This would impact workers under the Commonwealth Home Support Program, which is designed to provide “entry level” support for older Australians so they maintain independence and are not forced into intense care.

Uniting Care Australia national director Claerwen Little said providers would be forced to pay the difference in wages between CHSP and homecare packages, with one of Uniting Care’s members estimating it would be left up to $1m short-changed to cover its wages bill under the new arrangements.

The provider – representing 9 per cent of commonwealth home support services nationally for about 70,000 older Australians – said the pay discrepancy had the potential to undermine the impact of Labor’s 15 per cent wage rise on gender equality and the care economy.

Ms Little said workers might be forced to discontinue providing home services to the elderly and go to work in residential care.

“It is deeply concerning and unless we do resolve it, it will mean some workers in CHSPs will be paid less than homecare workers, and it really will create a two-tiered wage system,” she said.

“We are surprised and concerned, given the government’s commitment to ensure aged-care workers were paid the promised 15 per cent increase.

“We are very concerned that providers are going to have to pick up the bill, given we know how much services are struggling fin­ancially at the moment.”

According to analysis by United Care, an aged-care worker previously earning $40 an hour will have their pay boosted to $52 while a CHSP worker previously earning $40 will have their hourly pay raised to $46 to meet the new minimum award.

It comes after the Department of Health and Aged Care last week sent a letter advising CHSP providers of how to implement Labor’s $11.3bn pay rise, outlining that the government would only be funding a wage difference to ensure workers were paid the new minimum award.

This compares to homecare packages and residential aged care, which will receive a fully funded 11.5 per cent increase on wages even if the worker was previously paid above the new award.

A spokesman for Aged Care Minister Anika Wells said the funding mechanisms for home­care packages and CHSPs were different, and the government was providing funding for both packages to meet the 15 per cent increase to the award minimum wage.

Another major provider of aged care who spoke on the condition of anonymity said the discrepancy was “fundamentally unfair” and workers doing the same job would be paid differently.