Human services workers deserve pay increases

Gov. Andrew Cuomo recently urged the Port Authority to increase the minimum wage for airport workers to $19 an hour. That’s a good thing. Airline workers have difficult and important jobs. And so do New York’s more than 200,000 nonprofit human services workers, contracted by the state to take care of our children, our physically and mentally challenged, our domestic violence survivors, our elderly and other vulnerable citizens.

These front-line workers provide the needed care that allows New York to be a great place to live and raise a family.

The fact that state contracts and rates do not fully fund adequate worker salaries is, unfortunately, not new. What’s even more frustrating is that dating back to 2011, the state budget has eliminated statutory cost-of-living adjustments for our sector, resulting in nearly $500 million in lost wages for our workforce — money that would have made a real difference in the lives of these employees, a constituency that is approximately 80 percent female and 50 percent individuals of color, whose average salaries range from $23,000 to $30,000 per year.

With the governor’s recent support for a $15 minimum wage and equal pay for women, we hope that change is on the horizon. Funding the human services cost-of-living adjustment in our next state budget would be a worthy investment not only in our sector but for all New Yorkers.