Low wage work

When I was younger, I used to tag along with my aunt when she would go take care of the elderly. For me it was easy. I got to watch T.V. and play games in the yard while my aunt worked. Later, I realized what a hard job she was doing. We would spend about 4 hours at one house, and it was always just my aunt there. The people she took care of usually couldn’t walk far if at all, and seemed to be pretty out of it. My aunt would make sure they took their pills and ate, while at the same time clean and do other chores around the house. She was patient, which I realize now is a very important trait to have if you want to be successful at this job.
My aunt also had it a lot easier than most. She didn’t have to work full time, and she only had to visit one patient a day. My Dad’s girlfriend was also a home care aid. She started her day at 7 in the morning and usually works non-stop until 6. Lunch was almost always eaten in the car, and usually purchased from a drive-thru. Breakfast was just a cup of coffee. The hardest part of the job for her was not having enough days off. She would usually work most of Saturdays and occasionally Sundays. She would also have to pick what holidays she wanted to take off, because she couldn’t take them all off.
It is not an easy job either. It requires a sharp mind 100 percent of the time. Making a tired mistake like giving too much medicine or not watching what the patient is doing could cost them their life. A big mistake like that could also ruin yours. Home care aides who have families usually don’t get rest when they get home either. They have to tend to their own children and provide for their families. As said earlier. This job requires a lot of patience. A lot of the time the patients are senile. They may act just like children, spilling food, making messes, and not making it to the bathroom in time. Patients can become belligerent and may lash out at the worker.
All this work and she barely made over 20,000 dollars. She was earning around ten dollars an hour. As an adult supporting two children and living in Philadelphia, the living wage is in the upper 20’s. She was not earning a living wage salary. The living wage for one adult in Philadelphia is two dollars more than the minimum wage. If you add one child to that, the living wage becomes more than twice the minimum wage. Working to make ends meet for two kids by herself was very difficult. Luckily, she was able to move up in her business and start earning more.
For areas with a higher cost of living such as Los Angeles, the living wage is 12 dollars. A yearly salary that is required to pay all of the monthly expenses is 24, 940. With the middle 50 percent of home care aids earning 19,000 – 23,000, the monthly costs of just living is above their annual salary. This excludes medical emergencies and other unforeseen expenses.
Having a tough job is one thing, and not getting paid enough is another. Home care aides have both.