The Biden administration’s ongoing push to phase in a $15 federal minimum wage likely is causing a good deal of angst among long-term care administrators, but it may be exactly what the sector needs to overcome its workforce challenges, according to commentary published last week in the journal Annals of Long-Term Care.
The federal minimum wage has not increased in 11 years, despite the increased cost of living, yet opponents of the increase continue to point to concerns over higher unemployment and layoffs as industries struggle to be profitable. In the case of long-term care, facilities may not be able to decrease the number of staff members in response to an increased wage, given the current profit margins resulting from a decreased census since the pandemic, said article author Ilene Warner-Maron, Ph.D., RN-BC, executive director of the Eastern Pennsylvania Geriatric Society.
On the other hand, she noted, researchers have been examining the indirect benefits of increasing the pay for the lowest wage earners, including improving access to preventive medical care, decreasing “health-harming” products and improving job satisfaction, all of which have been shown to have positive benefits on health.
Although Warner-Maron pointed out the potential for higher wages to have the unintended consequence of encouraging the purchase of cigarettes, alcohol and other products that actually may impair health status, she also said that an increase in wages also might afford individuals more leisure time for exercising or enhancing social contacts.
“An increasingly healthy workforce, particularly frontline staff in long-term care, may result in decreased missed days of work and less turnover of employees — two key factors impacting the quality of care in facilities,” she wrote.
