With COVID-19 weakening a system—the caregiving economy—that was already fragile, experts at the panel called for a rebuilding of the caregiving infrastructure. “We can see things which have been true for a long time but which have been hidden and they aren’t hidden anymore.
“Our economy and our systems are set up in such a way where even if you do everything right, without the additional investments in our care infrastructure, we’re setting up generations upon generations to age into poverty, to get to a retirement age, without a retirement infrastructure, without the care they need that is culturally competent, affordable and quality and still having to make tough decisions,” said Kalipeni.
That said, Biden’s investment are a great next step to helping care workers like Benjamin. Benjamin grew up watching Black women caregivers, helping her understand how essential caregivers are not only to our society but to our economy. Despite her “love for it all,” she stated that she continues to struggle with the “lack of pay, the lack of protection, and the lack of respect” that comes with caregiving.
“You really have to love what you do because your pay doesn’t reflect it,” said Benjamin. “The respect doesn’t reflect it. And we’re not protected so that shows, in a sense, that we feel like we aren’t essential.” With Biden’s new plans, she hopes people will begin “to look at us as workers … not babysitters” and start to adequately address the challenges of caregiving work. As Ai-Jen Poo, director atThe webinar ended with one clear message: The caregiving crisis is not an “intractable problem..it is utterly solvable,” as Muñoz stated. “Any individual has the capacity to make a difference.”
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Source: TheEconomist - 🏆 6. / 92 Read more »