How important is aged care to you?

Aged care is distressingly underfunded and 93% of the Australian public agree, a recent poll commissioned by aged care union, United Voice, has revealed.

Independent polling company Auspoll, on behalf of United Voice, asked 1,504 Australians how important aged care was to them and if the federal government should increase funding in the sector.

The results put the aged care sector at the top of the priority list, ahead of industries such as defence, public transport and renewable energy.

Funding to the aged care sector was seen as a bigger priority to people as they age, with only about 38% of those aged 18 to 29 years of age agreeing aged care was “very important” to them.

United Voice assistant national secretary, Sue Lines,  was surprised with the results, saying although she knew people would be concerned about aged care, she was particularly “overwhelmed” with such a positive response.

“It’s interesting because what’s often in the media isn’t what ordinary folks like you and I are talking about; it shows that aged care is certainly high on the [public] agenda,” Ms Lines said.

The poll results reinforced the federal government’s need to restructure the industry, as was recommended by the recently released Productivity Commission Report into aged care.

“Without professional wages in the sector, we will not get the quality reforms that are long overdue,” Ms Lines said.

The union strongly believes the survey’s results, which indicate the public would like to see more of their tax dollars going into the aged care sector, implies the public also expects aged care workers to be paid more than what they are now.

“People assume it’s a well-paid job, but it isn’t. I think we all make assumptions about how much [money] people make and I think the response indicates aged care is high on the public agenda; people think [aged care workers] should be highly paid,” Ms Lines said.

United Voice has a vision to make the workforce the “centrepiece of reform”; adding workers must be paid more in order to deliver high-quality care.

“The quality care is there but the reality is it is being delivered by a workforce that’s living in poverty and working on their own time to provide it.

“You expect them to be treating your relative with respect and dignity and we would expect a decent rate of pay goes with that,” Ms Lines said.

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