The Journal Times’ investigation into group homes started after a criminal complaint filed against several workers at a group home.
Two employees of a group home in the 100 block of Howland Avenue, Racine, were charged with misdemeanor battery and disorderly conduct charges after a physical fight on Jan. 5 at the home between the employees over work schedules.
Not long after that in March, The Journal Times learned of an incident at a different group home in the 2100 block of Sutton Drive in Mount Pleasant where a group home resident entered a neighbor’s home unannounced and started drinking and spilling two-liter bottles of soda.
During an investigation into the incident it was learned that the Mount Pleasant group home employee was sleeping at the time and not watching the residents as he was supposed to be doing. He was subsequently fired.
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These incidents brought up red flags about area group homes.
Over the course of two months of investigation, Journal Times reporter Jon Brines has dug into what many are calling a “personal care worker crisis.” There is a shortage of workers willing to take the low-paying jobs, and those who do take them are often going through poverty issues of their own, leading to additional scheduling difficulties. Furthermore, complaints pertaining to personal care workers and facilities are up.
“We had 1,200 complaints last year and we are on pace this year for 1,500 complaints,” according to Alfred Johnson, director of the Bureau of Assisted Living of the Wisconsin State Department of Health Services, who was in Racine County last week to meet with care providers.
Johnson said that, for example, citations for “supervision” issues are one of the top citations for the first quarter of this year, meaning workers are too busy to avoid problems in care. In many cases, that is likely because of the worker shortages.
Crystal Miller, president of Frontida, blamed new high-profile businesses in the area, such as Amazon, for raiding the pool of entry-level workers and paying them upwards of $18 per hour. In comparison, home care providers receive about $10 per hour.
Last year, 49 percent of personal care workers in Wisconsin relied on some form of public assistance to get by, according to the New York-based Paraprofessional Heathcare Institute.
Ashley Wricks, human resources director of Home Harbor Assisted Living, said that percentage is higher in Racine County.
Because of poverty issues, Gitz said she’s seeing workers with food insufficiency and their own housing insufficiency.
“They don’t have reliable transportation, and health care schedules don’t align with the bus routes,” Gitz said.
To help with the crisis, the governor has proposed an increase in reimbursement rates for personal care workers, a proposal expected to be taken up this week. Gov. Scott Walker is recommending a 2 percent increase for each year of the bi-annual budget and Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, said he supports an increase.
“The state has one of the worst reimbursement rates in the nation and we need to have more competitive wages,” Vos said.
However, Amy Mlot, public relations and program development director for Society’s Assets, a Racine-based personal care worker agency, said the industry really needs a 15 percent increase in the rate.
The total cost to personal care providers for wages, supplies and other overhead is estimated to be $18.59 an hour, according to the Wisconsin Personal Services Association, however, the state reimbursement rate is currently $16.08 per hour and has not moved since 2008.
The 2 percent per year that the governor has proposed is a good start. But legislators must continue to watch this issue and watch how the personal care industry is managed and monitored.
Our most vulnerable citizens need to be taken care of. To do that, the businesses that run those homes need to be able to recruit quality staff and pay a competitive rate.