Union welcomes response to petition

The Service and Food Workers Union has welcomed the Parliamentary Health Select Committee's recommendation that Government Aged Care funding should be focused on an increase in workforce wages up to the levels paid to similar workers in District Health Boards.

The SFWU and Nurses Organisation recently presented a 34,000 signature petition to the committee calling for radical changes to Aged Care wage rates, training and staffing levels.

"It is great that the committee has identified the large gap between the miserable caregiver rates in Aged Care and those paid to similar workers in District Health Boards and there appears to be a cross-party determination to finally address this issue," said SFWU National Secretary John Ryall.

"There is a staffing crisis in both residential Aged Care and home support at a time in which the demand for such services is increasing."

"We hope that after many false starts this select committee report is finally the green light for a dramatic change for the Aged Care workforce."

ENDS

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