Don't let Beacon Hill leave our caring force behind, urge your Rep. to co-sponsor the salary reserve amendment!

For the third year in a row, Beacon Hill is threatening to pass over members of the caring force, who make up the backbone of our Commonwealth's safety net - the 31,500 direct support professionals who care for the most vulnerable people in our communities.

Direct support professionals, who can you hear from below, earn an average of about $12/ hour and often need to work second jobs to provide for their families and remain in our sector. These are some of the hardest working and lowest paid individuals in the Commonwealth. Because of level-funded contracts, the salary reserve is the only way they can receive a small salary increase.

While the Council is conscious of the state's fiscal constraints, it is unconscionable to balance the state budget -- for the third year in a row -- on the backs of the people who provide care to one-in-ten Massachusetts residents.

We are grateful to Rep. Ruth Balser who is standing with our caring force and sponsoring a budget amendment to fund a salary reserve in the FY '12 budget. Please take a moment now to use our online advocacy tool to urge your representative to stand up for our workforce and co-sponsor Rep. Balser's amendment.

Retaining and rewarding a professional workforce helps ensure the continuity and quality of care for our clients/consumers.  Rep. Balser's amendment will provide a $28 million salary reserve for the 31,500 caregivers who earn below $40,000/year, giving them an adjustment of about $18/week.

Please tell your legislators that three years is too long to make our caring force wait for a cost-of-living adjustment, even -- and especially -- during these challenging economic times.

Your voice matters. The only way legislators will continue to ignore our issues is if we continue to stay silent, so please speak up now!

Thank you for your advocacy on behalf of our workforce. Please email Bill Yelenak to let us know if your legislator responds to your message.

Take a few minutes to hear from some of the human service professionals this important fund will support: