LANSING, MI (MPRN)-- A state lawmaker says Michigan needs to improve the pay of direct care workers across the state.
The Michigan Public Radio Network’s Cheyna Roth says those are people who provide in home healthcare for the sick, disabled, and elderly.
Democratic Senator Jeff Irwin proposed an amendment to the state Senate’s version of the budget a couple months ago. It would, in total, set aside enough money to ensure that all direct care workers are paid $15 an hour.
The amendment was shot down – but we’re still a long way away from a final budget. Irwin says he’ll keep fighting for the provision because the state is facing a shortage of these workers.
“Because right now we are paying home health aides so little that they can earn at an entry level job anywhere else.”
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average hourly salary for home health aides in Michigan is just under $12 an hour.