This Mother’s Day, I’m asking our legislators to give the gift of care to home care workers by passing Senate Bills 790 and 791. Home care workers and the people they care for are our mothers, our aunts, and our wives and daughters. I am a home care worker.
For the last three years, I’ve taken care of my mother. She is 95 years old, and she has taken care of others her entire life.
Most people know my mother because of the work she put into Detroit helping young people get jobs. She’s been recognized many times for her community service. She’s an extremely prideful woman, so I won’t share too many more details about her needs now.
But it’s my turn to take care of her. I had to leave my $65,700 construction job due to COVID-19, and I began being her caregiver. After a two-week hospital stay, she needed someone to cook for her and to help her get in and out of bed and into her wheelchair.
On a typical day, I wake her up in the morning, make sure she’s fed so she can take her medicine, clean up, do the laundry, and get ready for the next meal. (She calls herself an Adult Queen, so every meal must be made fresh — no leftovers allowed. So I eat those).
The care she needs requires much of my time, which makes it hard for me to get other work. However, the $1,000 that I receive each month to provide this care is not enough to survive on.
Family members who become home care workers can and should be respected as part of the workforce who take care of more than 60,000 seniors and people with disabilities who need care in our state.
That’s why I’m asking the state Legislature to have a heart and pass SB 790 and 791. These bills would allow more than 35,000 home care workers to join a union as part of the Home Help program. Every worker, no matter what job they do, should have the right to form a union. They should be able to have a voice in their work.
Low pay for home care workers has meant that fewer people are going into this work. Because people can’t afford to do these jobs, there is a shortage of caregivers. Families have trouble finding caregivers when they need it.
For these reasons, I support the legislation that is now being considered in Lansing to allow home care workers in Michigan to join a union. I support this so that those of us who provide care for others in their homes can make a living. I am asking everyone to support this legislation. So many families need in-home care for a loved one at some point. Families want well-trained home care workers. Having a union to bargain for a livable wage and to provide training is key to having quality care available. Family caregivers like me need a union just as much as any other worker.
Having more of us able to provide this work to our loved ones and others who need it would easily be one of the best Mother’s Day gifts of all.
Valentino Richardson is a Detroiter and home care worker.
About Post Author
