After Minnesota Governor Tim Walz accepted the Democratic nomination for vice president with his family, disability entered the spotlight, as Walz’s son has ADHD and a non-verbal learning disorder. But many are concerned that disability hasn’t been nearly enough of a focus among either party. Particularly concerned are caregivers, who make up 26% of the voting population.
Ahead of November elections, 1199SEIU care workers and leaders of the Care Can’t Wait Coalition joined elected officials, members of the Biden Administration, and allies in a seven-state bus tour to address and advocate about the nation’s care crisis, which threatens families unable to access affordable childcare, and seniors and people with disabilities who can’t find or afford home care.
Bertha Motta, a home care worker living in Queens, NY, said that the Care Can’t Wait Bus tour was an “action call to our legislators, leaders, and the community for their support towards our children, the elderly and those whose bodies are trapped in chronic or congenital disorders and also for us—the healthcare workers.”
“We need to keep speaking loud and clear for all those parents who need to find or can’t afford childcare,” said Motta about why care is an important issue for families during this critical time. “We need to speak louder and louder for all those seniors and people with disabilities who can’t find or afford home care. We need to speak out for all those families who can’t find care and they are struggling to find out if they keep working or they keep at home taking care of family member for all day.”
People working in the care sector are continuing to fight for livable wages, benefits, and respect. Motta, 64, works for two agencies. She has a steady case of 48 hours over four nights each week and fills in on cases for six hours on select weeks, which qualifies her for medical benefits and a retirement pension. But this isn’t the case for many of her colleagues. “Some of my coworkers don’t get enough hours to get a decent income and this situation puts them at risk to not have the amount of money they need at the end of the month to pay rent or to buy groceries,” said Motta.
A poll conducted between May 31-June 2, 2024 by Morning Consult on behalf of Pivotal Ventures and BPC Action showed 32% of the 4,003 respondents who are both registered voters and caregivers said they are neither satisfied nor dissatisfied with the caregiving benefits offered by their employer, while 13% are somewhat or very dissatisfied, which indicates room to improve policies.
That is why SEIU members are continuing to push policy priorities to the forefront of the 2024 election cycle, asking for the following: investment of $400 billion in Medicaid home and community based services (HCBS) to create over one million union-protected direct care jobs that expand access to HCBS for people with disabilities; the passage of the Child Care for Working Families Act to ensure that no family pays more than 7% of their income for child care; and the passage of legislation that would ensure all working people have access to at least 12 weeks of paid leave to address personal or family related matters.
“I feel grateful and proud to be a Home Health Aide. My job is a blessing,” added Motta. “As a community we need to raise our voices because Care Can’t Wait, as a quote of Martin Luther King, Jr. said that ‘our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter’ and care matters to all, so, we can’t remain silent.”
Opinions expressed are solely those of the writer(s) and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Able News at The Viscardi Center and/or The Viscardi Center.