Why Are Carers Struggling To Meet Cost Of Living Demands?
Carers struggling to meet cost of living demands with little increase in
government payments. The payment and allowances for Carers has not increased in
nearly a decade and advocates say it is pushing already exhausted Carers into
more stress and poverty. One Australian woman has stated that if she were a paid
disability support worker instead of a Carer, she could earn the same amount
working a two-hour shift on a Sunday than she does for a week of 24/7 care. What
are your thoughts LiveTribers? Why are Carers struggling to meet cost of living
demands?
Posted by on 22 Feb 2023
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Elizabeth
When I became a carer for my partner I accepted that I would never be wealthy,
but I would at least be able to get by. With cost of living skyrocketing and
carer payments failing to keep pace it's becoming so difficult to make ends meet
that I have to juggle paying bills with groceries. Any unexpected expense can be
panic inducing.
We all have different family situations and have to say it's tough on most of us
unless you are wealthy. My parents have been caring for autistic elder brother
for 41 years and it's hard but doable. They hardly have the help of outside
carers as no one wants the work, or they prefer to work with young children as
they get paid more.
I was an unpaid carer for my mother for her final seven years and deemed it a
privilege. She had made sacrifices for me throughout her life so I welcomed the
opportunity to do the same for her. While government assistance would have been
helpful, I managed without and have no regrets,
As a Un paid career for my Mum I can honestly say it's a struggle, with rent
prices being hiked up to groceries and food it's hard but I would go without to
make sure my Mum has everything she needs. You do what you have ro for family
They're totally underpaid! The government is saving so much money, while carers
are suffering, while doing what they can. If it wasn't for carers, the
government would have to spending a lot more for residential care.
Carers, instead of being recognised for the Heros that they are, often are
Socially discriminated against by being wrongly labelled as a drain on the
Public Welfare System.
For their 24-hour Shifts, 7 days a week and 52 Weeksthe Year, Carers not only
save the Government many thousands of Dollars but also free up beds in Aged Care
Facilities, Hospitals, & other Government Institutions, which Governments and
Service providers are obliged to pay their Staff a Liveable Wage.
The Carer's Reward for this Cost Saving Measure is to receive a Fortnightly
Pittance with which they are expected to live off whilst attending to the
Physical, Psychological, Spiritual, Medical, and Social Needs of those for whom
they take care.of, however, no matter how devoted they are towards those they
care for & however loving they tend to care for their loved Ones, the Carer's
Needs are overlooked, Eventually, Burnout becomes an Issue which is overlooked
by Governments of all persuasions resulting a decline in both the Health of both
Carers and those being cared For.
Yes I do agree that Carers suffer much but Provide a Specialised Service to
their Country for which they are wrongly accused of being a drain on the Welfare
System.
It's because the amount they receive is not a living wage. People who are full
time carers have to be prepared to do it out of love and duty rather than hope
to be fairly compensated by the government.
When jobseekers get paid more than carers 'because they are used to a higher
income' it's an insult. I left my lucrative career to become a carer, and am
living on 1/4 of my old income. It's hard, I'm someone who is constantly making
the most of my time with side hustles, and I live pretty scarily (meaning can't
maintain healts etc) on a carer's income. Oh and i've got a car that costs more
in repairs than it's worth, and I desperately try to keep this running because
it's transport for the person I care for who has on average, 8 medical
appointments per week, and without the car, their quality of life would
deterioate very quickly. Just having that 'luxury' is about 2k a year in rego,
insurance (car's not insured, just third party).
Habits of the people are important to them and their eyes ears toungue nose and
body link with day to day behaviour. And all these centres send signal to mind
continuesly. From early morning to night bed they do their activities as
practice in their life. They never thing what is going around and no clue about
their financial statements. Their basket and just behave or live normal way. For
example four member family use four kilos of sugar per month.Is it ok. But my
experience says they need only 2 kilos means they wasted 2 kilos. Like wise
water usage no body knows. What ever comes they pay and no analytical mind set.
Ultimate outcome is monthly or daily expenses rising due to this negligence and
it is a main reason for inflation in economy. Every family must educate on
thrift behaviour and keep records on their expenses and cut down unnecessary
expenses as much as the can. Secondly they need to avoid consumption of high
price goods and use substitute goods alternatively.
Simply they must do a research on their behaviour of life and consumption
patterns seriously then family inflation can be reduced or in other words
signals coming through ear eye nose toungue and body to mind must be analysed
properly and then use your pocket carefully then no one can influence you with
any thing and your savings will go up seriously. Good luck
I think carers should get more waged per hour, because everything is increasing
and we're encountering inflation, everything is expensive, but income is not
raised and it seems unfair, so carers should definitely get more money.
Caregivers don't earn enough for the type of service they offer. Also if they
don't have as many clients then they can't make much either. They need some
kind of basic or government support.
Being a carer is mostly a labour of love and if they get a payment for this it
is fair enough. A lot of people are currently struggling to make their money go
further because it seems everything is going up except wages. Can only hope
costs stop rising.
Being someone that is caring or my sick life partner on a fortnightly payment
that is under $150 I would say wake-up and TRY living on that before expecting
someone else too.
I am here trying to supplement my income.
But cost of living is currently skyrocketing everyone working and otherwise.
The cost of living is high for everyone but especially for carers as they need
to provide for themselves plus the person who they are caring for. Much like
most parents and children
Carers work really hard to support their families and those they are caring for.
They are paid very little to be a support person and carer for people who have
disabilities and chronic health conditions. The governments save money by not
having to employ professional carers to look after these people. They keep the
house in order, take the person to the doctors, specialists and other
appointments, make sure that the person takes the medicine, some people even
wash and feed the person they care for. Carers are gems who are not truly
appreciated for what they do. If you don't think it is hard, try doing it for a
day and then imagine doing it every day. Most carers are not allowed to work
either, other than their caring responsibilites which takes up most or all of
their time. So yes, all carers deserve a medal and all our appreciation. It
requires a special person to be a full time carer. My grandma was a full time
carer for 40 years. She looked after my grandfather who was house bound and not
able to work, after being injured training for world war 2.
Shea, you've not only totally misunderstood the topic, but your attitude
demonstrates a lack of empathy of which you should be ashamed. This is not about
professional carers who want an unreasonably high salary, it's about people who
care for others, usually family members, NOT as a "job" but out of necessity.
They're entitled to a payment from the government for that care, because if they
weren't providing the service the government would have to pay a professional to
provide it, which would cost a lot more. So we have teenagers caring for
disabled parents, parents caring for disabled adult children, and adults caring
for elderly relatives. They often have to give up paid employment to do so, so
they are certainly not "in the job just for the money." To put it in
perspective, my mum is a full time carer for a disabled younger family member
and Centrelink has offered her $47 a fortnight. So if you'd like to tell her "if
you're in the job just for the money you shouldn't be a carer at all" then I'll
pass that on to her, but please let me know who you think SHOULD be doing that
task, and give me the name and number of anyone who's willing to work
round-the-clock for $47 a fortnight.
Tara, this is not about people with careers in care, it's about people who find
themselves caring for relatives and receive very little financial support from
the government for doing so. The alternative to increasing the carer's pension
is for the government to pay for professional or residential care for everybody
on a disability pension, so their family members don't have to look after them.
Run the numbers on that and get back to me.
You become a carer for a family member or close friend out of love, not because
of how much money you can earn. Everyone is struggling these days due to the
rising cost of living.
Some of these comments demonstrate a staggering lack of empathy. Do you really
think people caring for sick and disabled relatives are in it for "how much
money [they] can earn?" They want enough money to sustain the level of the care
they're offering. That's all. Look at @coaster below who cares for a disabled
son and can barely pay for the electricity they need to care for their son with
the $60 they get from the government. Sixty dollars! Scolding people like that
and saying they should be doing it out of love and not for the money is frankly
disgraceful. Have some compassion.
We are all struggling, but if a family member suddenly became disabled and
dependent on you for care, I think it would be reasonable to ask for a carer's
pension that allows you to keep the lights on. They're paid dozens of dollars,
not hundreds, for the round-the-clock care they provide. And if we don't make it
possible for carers to keep doing what they're doing, the alternative -
professional care - is going to cost the taxpayer many billions more than an
increase in the carer's pension.
'Carers' are exactly that - caring people who don't make a noise, who care for
loved ones and keep them out of the system for as long as they can and do a
wonderful job, but the squeaky wheels get the oil and because they rarely
complain, the government doesn't address their needs, Carers do what they do for
love and compassion and would feel guilty asking for more. Perhaps others she
raise their voices in appreciation of all they do and insist on a fair deal.
I feel like a tax levy should be raised to better support carers. As much as I
hate to say it, a watchdog needs to oversee who and how the money is paid out.
Every time a scheme like this is introduced, all the leeches come out to take
advantage.
I think that's nonsense, actually. The carer's pension is a pittance. As I said
elsewhere, my retired mum was offered $47 a fortnight for full-time care for a
disabled younger relative. Not only that, but the application process is a huge
headache. No "leech" in their right mind would take advantage of something so
fruitless and complicated. And as long as you need a GP to sign off on it,
there's no need for a "watchdog." Doctors are best placed to determined who
should get a carer's pension and who shouldn't.
I feel low paid workers like carers are kept down on purpose,it is the old
saying the rich get richer & the poor get poorer.Hopefully one day things will
change,however with greed & power seekers I am not so sure.
The cares are struggling to meet the coat of living because they are paid so
little compared to other jobs related to them
They are made to work tirelessly and at the end of the day they are paid so
little which leads to them struggling to survive in the society
I have a few carers both family and friends and professional with NDIS and
sometimes they struggle to keep Thier workers as it's not enough money for the
at times hard job they are doing on the run. Also it can be a burden on my
family having to pitch in out of their pockets to help me or things I need. I
wish carers had it easier and could get a good income for the work hours and
support they importantly offer and give. Thank uou
They unfortunately don't get paid enough and then everything else has gone up,
so they can't catch up with things. Everything is just crazy expensive. It's
terrible.
Because every thing has gone up and I mean every thing. Same product that was $5
end of last year is now either $6.50 or $7.50 and that was just for some cooking
oil. Times are tough and they are only going to get tougher and we are in for a
long ride. We don't need any support and I do dread the day we do because I am
unsure if we will be able to afford it which is rather scary. We just don't look
after the elderly or the disabled well enough in this country.
It's up to the organizations that employ the carers to pay them, not the
government. My parents had carers and I was never happy with what they received
for their money. They did not lift anything to dust, they made my 90 year old
father lift the mat otherwise they would not wash the floor underneath. I went
over one day and scrubbed the bathroom because it was disgusting. Mum even
changed providers and got a woman that sat playing with her phone most of the
time. The last day mum ever had a carer she took mum out shopping and when they
got home mum fell breaking her hip. When the ambulance went to take mum to
hospital the carer wanted double time so mum was alone until I could get to the
hospital. Sorry but carers don't rate high in my opinion.
Paula, this post is not about professional carers who receive a salary, but
people who care for family members and receive a government payment for doing
so. That payment is miniscule - a tiny fraction of what the government would pay
a professional carer to do the same job.
Mainly because the Government doesn't think there are enough votes in it for
them to subsidise the critical work these hard working carers do. You can bet if
it was something to do with global warming or Aboriginal rights, which are vote
catchers, the Government would be throwing as much money as it could at them.
More Government housing and removing negative gearing(as mact said) would be a
start plus an enquiry into the NDIS which is being ripped off for millions of
dollars which could be redirected to carers.
Beacuse in general many fellow Aussies have made very greedy use of ridiculously
low interest rates to buy rental property and now to continue the wealth jack up
rents as rates rise. People start to couch surf, live in cars tents, garages and
vans and in substandard often remote town flea pits where the rip off
continues.
The ONLY solution is to build more Government Housing and thus risking another
Logan or Macquarie Fields slum developing. And removing negative gearing on
established homes and removing the 50 percent discount on ANY real estate
capital gain. All Government Housing to be strictly means tested. That's the
solution cos it's hard to legislate against greed!!!
It is a disgrace how little they do get for all the work they do. I am a carer
for my son and the $60 odd dollars extra above my aged pension does not even
cover electricity he uses. He spends all day with me from 7am through to
anywhere from 3pm to 7pm every day. Washing, ironing, charging phone, TV,
shower, washing machine, and is in every room bar my bedroom and office. I get
no time to myself really as by evening I am too tired to do anything. I don't
do it for the money but extra would take a lot of stress out of the situation.
Carers save so much money from the government coffers but are ignored or treated
abysmally. I know there are demands on the tax dollar but I also feel so much
is wasted and could be put to much better use in our society. All governments
have some blame in this but I think the last 10 years have really given the
haves so much more and the have nots so much less.
$60 for all the work you do is disgraceful, coaster. If the government had to
pay for a professional carer for your son it would cost them a lot more than
$60. And you're right, funds are allocated very poorly - the government always
seems to find the money for things like sports stadiums.
