ACA Chief Executive Tracey Martin said the Select Committee's Pay Equity report reinforced an issue the sector has long faced.
The Aged Care Association of New Zealand has responded to the release of the People’s Select Committee on Pay Equity report. Chief Executive Tracey Martin said the report reinforces an issue the sector has consistently raised: the women who overwhelmingly staff New Zealand’s aged residential care facilities perform work that requires skill, judgement, responsibility and resilience, and that work should be valued accordingly.
"Care and support workers in aged residential care undertake skilled and demanding roles. They provide hands-on personal care, support residents living with complex health conditions and dementia, monitor wellbeing and escalate concerns to registered nurses, assist with medication under delegation, support mobility and safe transfers, and contribute to palliative and end-of-life care within a multidisciplinary team,” said Martin.
"This work requires judgement, training, physical resilience and emotional intelligence. It is skilled work and work that deserves to be valued accordingly.”
Martin said that the ACA’s long-held view was simple: work that requires comparable skills, responsibility and effort should be remunerated on an equitable basis, regardless of whether it is traditionally performed by women or men.
Martin said aged residential care providers participated in the pay equity process in good faith.
"We engaged because we believe in fair recognition of the workforce. Providers gathered extensive data and worked constructively toward a sector-wide solution,” she added.
"At the same time, we have always been clear that pay equity in a government-funded sector must be matched by sustainable funding settings. Providers cannot absorb structural wage corrections without corresponding funding adjustments."
She said the broader issue remains workforce sustainability.
"New Zealand has around 40,000 aged residential care beds, significantly more than the public hospital bed base, and demand will continue to grow as our population ages.”
To deliver safe, high-quality care, the ACA said the industry must attract and retain a skilled workforce. Fair and equitable pay is part of that equation, alongside immigration settings, training pathways and a funding model that reflects the true cost of care.
The Association will continue to engage constructively with the Government on achieving a durable solution that supports residents, workers and providers alike.
"Our focus remains on ensuring older New Zealanders receive the care they deserve - delivered by a workforce that is respected and properly valued."
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