State Chart Book On Wages For Personal And Home Care Aides, 1999-2009

Chart Book Highlights

• Over the period 1999 to 2009, national median wages for Personal and Home Care Aides (PHCAs) increased by 26% or an average of 2.6% per year, from $7.50 to $9.46. However, after adjusting for inflation, real wages for these aides essentially remained unchanged.
• In 2009, nominal median wages within the continental U.S. ranged from $7.50 in Texas to $12.06 in the District of Columbia; real median wages (in 1999 dollars) ranged from $6.01 to $9.66.
• Over the 10 year period, 15 states showed a decline in real median wages for PHCAs. Eight states saw real wages fall by 5% or more.
• The vast majority of states (34) and the District of Columbia showed an increase in real median wages received by PHCAs over the period, indicating that these wages kept up with inflation. However, only 5 states showed an annual increase of at least 2%, suggesting the slow progress that states generally have made in improving the competitiveness of PHCA wages in low-�wage labor markets.
• In 2009, only one state "New Jersey" reported a PHCA wage above 250% of the Federal Poverty Level wage for a single individual ($13.03), a level that in many states approximates an economically self-sufficient wage for a single individual but one that likely is insufficient for an adult with dependent children.
• In over two-�thirds of states (36), average hourly wages for PHCAs were below 200% of the Federal Poverty Line wage for individuals in one-�person households working full time. Since the 200% poverty level is low enough to qualify households for many state and federal assistance programs, this means that in these states most PHCAs, certainly those who work part time and have children, are earning near - �poverty level wages. From 2008 to 2009, the number of states paying low wages to PHCAs increased from 32 to 36.