On July 14, Satbir Singh reported on the permanent pay increase for personal support workers announced by Ontario Premier Doug Ford.
Niagara College’s Angela Butt, associate dean in the School of Nursing and Personal Support Worker Studies, comments on the impact this may have on those considering a career as a PSW.
Butt asserts that better wages are one of the motivating factors to help attract more people to the field, some of whom are interested in the work but have had to consider more financially lucrative employment opportunities. She also asserts that increased wages can help with PSW retention as well as education and advancement in the field. Butt added that more full-time positions are also important to ensure PSW’s have job security.
She says, “I’m hoping it creates a really nice stepping-stone for the person who wants to bounce around from different career to different career, or somebody can stay and not feel their own quality of life is being sacrificed because of not having a great net income.”
