skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Sunday, February 2, 2025

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Canada and Mexico impose tariffs in response to Trump's trade policies, 55 victims identified including 3rd military pilot in fatal D.C. midair collision, and lawmakers in Montana, Nebraska and Wisconsin address gender laws, crypto regulations and violence prevention.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

President Trump imposes tariffs on Canada and Mexico. Legal experts question Trump's use of executive orders, and mass deportations may start to take a toll in the southwest.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

As bird flu spreads, egg prices continue to soar, wildfires aren't stopping Americans from moving to wildfire-prone states, and post-pandemic infrastructure isn't just roads and bridges but also education, healthcare and economic opportunity.

CT Caregivers Call on State Leaders for Better Working Conditions

play audio
Play

Monday, May 8, 2023   

Caregivers in Connecticut are calling on state officials for better conditions and higher pay.

They're seeking a $25 an hour minimum wage, paid time off, affordable healthcare, and a pension for retirement planning.

Chase Bolling is a Personal Care Attendant and member of 1199 Service Employees International Union Northeast.

Originally, he was a machinist, but became a PCA because it wasn't easy to juggle caregiving for his mother-in-law with his full time job.

Bolling said any improvements to caregiver's working conditions must begin with better funding.

"I think the foremost thing would be increasing our budget," said Bolling. "You know, nothing happens in this world without money and you kind of can't take any steps forward or any initiatives towards improving our conditions without first improving our pay, and providing access to benefits."

He added that better funding will be able to provide long-term job security.

Along with PCA's, unpaid family caregivers are facing similar challenges.

According to an AARP report, unpaid family caregivers across the U.S. provided care valued at $600 billion in 2021. That's a $130 billion increase over 2019.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, PCA's - like many of Connecticut's healthcare workers - were dealing with strained working conditions.

During the first few months of the pandemic, there was a shortage of personal protective equipment.

While many healthcare providers have fought for and seen changes in their working conditions, Deidre Murch - vice president and homecare director for SEIU 1199 Northeast - said it hasn't been the same for PCA's.

"What we see is that there are a lot of examples where PCA's have been treated, literally, as invisible," said Murch, "without any of the same recognition or support in wages and benefits as other healthcare providers have."

From here, Murch added that it's now up to state elected officials to take bold steps in uplifting this workforce out of poverty-inducing wages and lacking benefits.




get more stories like this via email

more stories
Unhealthy concentrations of fine particle matter can threaten vulnerable groups like children, the elderly and people with heart or lung disease, according to the National Institutes of Health. (Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

By Elijah de Castro for Keen Sentinel. Broadcast version by Kathryn Carley for New Hampshire News Service, for the Solutions Journalism Network-…


Social Issues

play sound

Elected officials in New York and nationwide joined an amicus brief filed by the Public Rights Project fighting President Donald Trump's executive ord…

Social Issues

play sound

The Trump administration this week reversed a decision to freeze federal loans and grants -- but only after it led to mass confusion among organizatio…


Legislation to increase fines for companies that violate child labor law to as much as $10,000 passed with overwhelming bipartisan support. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New child labor laws went into effect in Virginia at the start of the year, but some advocates say more can be done. House Bill 100 took effect in …

Environment

play sound

A North Dakota legislative committee on Thursday took up a trio of bills about landowners' rights as states in this region are eyed for carbon-capture…

In 2020, nearly every victim service provider in Ohio experienced a 37% cut in their Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) funding, significantly impacting their ability to support survivors. (ozerkina/Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Service providers and advocacy groups in Ohio and across the country are facing uncertainty following recent executive orders that have thrown federal…

Social Issues

play sound

Pennsylvania lawmakers return to Harrisburg on Monday, facing renewed pressure to address long-standing issues, including improving the economy and …

Health and Wellness

play sound

Some 125,000 children in Michigan struggle with major depression, which can hinder learning, behavior and relationships, according to a recent survey…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021