Open letter calling for the Care and Support Workers’ Pay Equity
AUT Social Transformation Research Institute is proud to stand alongside 28 other organisations in supporting the Public Service Association Te Pukenga Here Tikanga Mahi's open letter calling for the Care and Support Workers’ Pay Equity Claim to be settled and fully funded within the first 100 days of the next Government.
The evidence is clear. After years of work by unions, employers, and sector representatives, the claim found that care and support workers' jobs have been undervalued by between 24% and 38%. The comparator roles have been agreed and the undervaluation identified. What is needed now is the commitment to fund and settle the claim.
As a research institute focused on social change, equity, and wellbeing, we recognise the vital contribution care and support workers make every day to the lives of older people, disabled people, whānau, and communities across Aotearoa New Zealand. Their work is essential to the functioning of our health and support systems and deserves to be fairly recognised and rewarded.
This is about fairness, gender equity, and valuing the people who provide care and support to some of our most vulnerable communities. It is also about building a stronger, more sustainable care sector for the future.
