Anika Wells (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Aged Care) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Cunningham for her question. I know she cares very deeply about this and is very deeply engaged in lifting the standard of aged care in this country, and I thank her for continuing to work shoulder to shoulder with me on that. The Albanese government is proud to be delivering the largest ever pay rise for aged-care workers in history. After nine years of workforce neglect from those opposite, Labor has made a record investment in our workforce.

Our commitment helps more than 250,000 workers across this country, and it means that nurses can earn an extra $10,000 a year. It means that personal-care workers can earn an extra $7,000 a year. That is what valuing workers looks like. That is what care looks like. That is what doing something meaningful to address workforce shortages actually looks like. I have visited 30 aged-care homes in the 11 months that I have been the minister, and the no. 1 issue raised with me is staff shortages. We said that we would address the mess left behind by those opposite, and now our budget commits $11.3 billion to addressing their workforce crisis.

But this wage rise impacts more than just our tireless and skilled workers. It improves the lives of those who receive aged care as well. They are just as thrilled for their workers as we are. On the weekend I met home-care recipient Rachel, 91 years young, while doorknocking in my electorate of Lilley. Rachel uses a home-care package, and she had her nurse, Elle, from Burnie Brae over when they watched the Treasurer and I make the announcement on TV last Thursday morning. Rachel said Elle actually shouted out loud, and you could hear her from Bribie Island, because Elle has three kids, and this announcement, that she was getting an extra $200 a week, meant she could buy her kids new shoes for sport. That is what this announcement does. Workers like Elle and care recipients like Rachel are why we committed to this record spend. This spend is more than 10 times what those opposite committed to in their workforce pillar to address the workforce crisis—a pillar that could not even improve or commit to improving pay-packet structure. In fact, those opposite still refuse to back this funding of a wage rise, even now.

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