How do aged care workers feel about government support, the Omicron outbreak and Australian Defence Force deployment? What do workers see as the big challenges ahead for 2022? How many workers are planning to leave the industry this year?

To answer these questions, we surveyed aged care workers across Australia. Here is a summary of the results.

Overview

• Less than half (41%) of workers are committed to staying in the sector this year. Most workers fit into one of two camps: considering leaving (34%); undecided (25%).
• A significant majority of workers (73%) are finding the Omicron outbreak more challenging than previous outbreaks.
• The overwhelming majority of workers (87%) believe that the Government is not doing enough to support them.
• Almost all workers (94%) believe that the Government’s recently announced “Bonus Payment” for aged care workers does not go far enough.
• Most aged care workers prefer to see Australian Defence Force (ADF) support used for non-clinical tasks unless ADF personnel are well-qualified and properly supervised. There is also a strong feeling that ADF support is a band-aid measure that distracts from systemic problems in the industry.
• “Staff shortages” is the biggest challenge facing the aged care industry in 2022, followed by “Funding” and “Increasing Regulator Burden”.

About the Survey

The survey, entitled “Aged Care Workforce – A Sector in Crisis Mode” was issued via ACE on 8 February 2022, and closed on 18 February 2022. We received 165 responses to the survey from aged care workers across Australia. The survey asked six questions about aged care workers’ thoughts on key issues for 2022.

Are you considering leaving the sector in 2022?

Less than half (41%) of workers are committed to staying in the sector this year. Most workers fit into one of two camps: considering leaving (34%); undecided (25%).

Compared to previous COVID-19 outbreaks, how has the current Omicron outbreak affected your facility?

A significant majority of workers (73%) are finding the Omicron outbreak more challenging than previous outbreaks.

Do you feel the Government is committed to supporting the aged care workforce?

The overwhelming majority of workers (87%) believe the government is not doing enough to support them.

Do you feel the recently announced Bonus Payment adequately recognises your current workload?

Almost all workers (94%) believe that the Bonus Payment does not go far enough. “Bonus Payment” in this context refers to the two payments of up to $400 each that the Government is offering to eligible aged care workers. See the Department of Health newsletter for more information.

How should the Australian Defence Force be used to support the aged care sector throughout the current Omicron outbreak?

This question gave workers the chance to share their thoughts via comments. Although there was much variation across the responses, some themes emerged. Most aged care workers prefer to see Australian Defence Force (ADF) support used for non-clinical tasks unless ADF personnel are well-qualified and properly supervised. There is also a strong feeling that ADF support is a band-aid measure that distracts from systemic problems in the industry.

For more information, see our previous article.

What do you see as your biggest challenges for 2022?

We asked aged care workers to rank eight issues in order of most to least challenging. The top five challenges were:

1. Staff Shortages
2. Funding
3. Increasing Regulatory Burden
4. COVID-19/Omicron Outbreaks
5. Isolation of Residents.

Staff shortages were the clear frontrunner, with almost half of workers saying it was their number one challenge, and more than 80 per cent of workers ranking it among their top three.