Direct Care Workforce

The state-by-state charts can be downloaded, and feature information on workforce size and projected employment growth, trends in wages for each direct-care occupation, and information on health insurance coverage rates and reliance on public assistance. The PHI Data Center also features short write-ups and links to legislation and regulatory developments pertaining to workforce, notable state-based initiatives, employer best practices, and resources.

Summary presents key findings from a collection of nine studies conducted in 2009–2010, focusing on the employment efforts of working-age (age 18 to full retirement). Three of these reports concern TTW participants and program issues, while the other 6 are studies on more general topics related to beneficiary employment and SSA work supports. These nine studies constitute the fifth report of the Ticket to Work program evaluation.

This study explores the perceived value of workplace accommodations from the perspective of the individual users of PAS who had contacted the Job Accommodation Network (JAN). A follow-up survey assessed their perspective on the impact of PAS and other accommodations. The findings indicate that people who have considered or implemented PAS accommodations perception of work ability increases from being "Substantially Limited" with no accommodation to "Not Limited at All" with accommodiation.

Disability measures recently introduced into the U.S. Current Population Survey offer an unprecedented opportunity to track, month by month, the labor force status of working-age adults with disabilities in the midst of a major economic downturn. Over a one-year period, the number of employed workers with disabilities declined at a rate more than three times that of workers without disabilities, and the unemployment rate rose dramatically to levels far exceeding that of other workers.

New Jersey's DiscoverAbility operates with the mission of providing resources, networking opportunities and ongoing professional development to staff working in the field of disability employment. To access webinars, articles, and other important resources, explore their website. Also attached is an example of outreach work - a staff scholarship opportunity, providing five employees with the ability to attend a training conference. May be replicable by other MIG states.

This chart book highlights findings from two new federally sponsored national surveys. Both surveys represent a major advance in the data available about two of America’s most important jobs, certified nursing assistants working in nursing homes and home health aides in home health and hospice care settings. The chart book is intended to help multiple audiences understand these jobs, issues, and challenges; and establish useful benchmarks as goals toward which improvement efforts might aspire.

The Community Living Initiative is an effort to give people with disabilities and older adults greater opportunities to live in their communities and achieve their goals. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services identified several issues and challenges in the development and refinement of new strategies to support and promote community living. HHS held four Listening Sessions around the country with state & local officials, consumers, service providers, and advocates.

This article presents an overview of the direct-care workforce, touching upon training requirements, demographics, wages and benefits, and employment settings. It notes that, despite the U.S. needing more direct-care workers than ever, job quality in the field remains extremely low. The article proceeds to list several ways that policymakers and employer practices can improve the quality of direct-care jobs. The article was written by PHI Director of Policy Research, Dorie Seavey.

Direct-care workers provide 70-80% of the paid hands-on long-term care and personal assistance received by the elderly or individuals living with disabilities or other chronic conditions. They also constitute one of the largest and fastest-growing workforces in the country, playing a vital role in job creation and economic growth, particularly in low-income communities. This analysis shows that the wages and benefits for these frontline health care workers continue to be woefully inadequate.

The new issue of Generations, the quarterly journal of the American Society on Aging, is devoted entirely to the eldercare workforce. The Winter 2010-11 issue covers: the current state of the nation’s eldercare workforce; the eldercare workforce’s makeup, deficiencies, and strengths; and strategies for much-needed workforce recruitment, training and management, policy development, and fostering of cultural competencies.