IHSS workers, many of whom are immigrants, rally for fair pay to address care crisis

Santa Clara County, CA – Today over 100 In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) workers rallied outside of the Santa Clara Board of Supervisors meeting to urge county officials to invest in long-term care and support immigrant workers amid months-long negotiations for a new contract and recent escalation of federal immigration enforcement. The IHSS workers are members of SEIU Local 2015, the nation’s largest long-term care union representing more than half a million workers across California.

In Santa Clara County, more than 36,000 IHSS workers provide essential long-term care (including paramedical, personal care, and household services) to older adults and people with disabilities. Immigrants play a large role in the home care workforce, making up one in three workers in home care settings.  

“Our fight for a strong IHSS contract–one that advances progress, not poverty–is inseparable from the fight for immigrant rights,” said SEIU 2015 Executive Vice President Kim Evon. “In Santa Clara and throughout the country, the stability of the long-term care industry relies on the wellbeing of immigrant workers. They need respect and dignity, as well as our public investment. We can only address the growing care crisis by securing a livable wage for each and every one of our in-home workers.”

Lack of access to the wages and benefits needed to provide for their families is driving IHSS workers out of the caregiving profession.  The current IHSS wage in Santa Clara is $20.04 per hour, yet The MIT Living Wage calculator estimates the living wage to be $35.44 per hour for one adult with no children in Santa Clara. This shortage of providers has resulted in more than 3.3 million authorized care hours going unused last year in the County.

“Santa Clara County needs to start investing in care before more providers leave the industry which will worsen the current care crisis,” said SEIU Local 2015 President Arnulfo De La Cruz. “Care workers are essential and they need to be valued in order to safeguard the well-being of seniors and people with disabilities in Santa Clara County.”

Tonya York, a Santa Clara County IHSS worker, currently serves as her sister’s home care provider while working a second job in the insurance industry. “I chose to step up and help my sister live her life with dignity,” she told the Board. “If my sister didn’t have a caregiver, she would have to be left home alone for extended periods of time. Her life would be in danger and I would be heartbroken.”

For 15 years, Veronica Salvidar has been the sole IHSS provider for her son Brian, who has severe autism and chronic asthma. “I work a second job in addition to being Brian’s caregiver,” she said. “The pay I receive is never enough to cover our basic costs. We need decent wages that allow us to take care of our loved ones.”

Many IHSS workers in Santa Clara face similar challenges as Tonya and Victoria. Recent polling found that 78% of Santa Clara’s IHSS workers work multiple jobs at least some of the time just to make ends meet.

The poll found that low wages for Santa Clara home care workers also prevent them from paying for housing, feeding their families and accessing medical care:

• Nearly 62% of Santa Clara’s IHSS workers have difficulty paying their rent or mortgage each month, reporting that they are sometimes or always late with their payments.
• 52% of Santa Clara’s IHSS workers experience consistent food insecurity, relying on CalFresh and/or food banks at least monthly. 
• 44% of Santa Clara’s IHSS workers are sometimes or often unable to access medication—and 46% are sometimes or often prevented from visiting the doctor—due to concerns about cost.

In Santa Clara and across California, the population of older adults is growing, increasing the demand for in-home care. The IHSS program ensures people who need long-term care can receive it in the setting of their choice, supporting their ability to remain in their homes instead of an institutional setting.

SEIU Local 2015 is committed to advancing policies that improve the lives of long-term care workers and those they care for. The union’s bargaining team encourages the Board of Supervisors to collaborate to address these pressing issues and ensure that Santa Clara’s long-term care system is prepared to support the county’s future.To learn more about SEIU Local 2015 visit www.SEIU2015.org or on social media @SEIU2015.