Should rest homes be given more priority in funding?
The Human Rights Commission's equal employment opportunities commissioner Judy McGregor says that at the current rate, the industry will need 70 percent more workers in less than a decade. Most workers typically earn $13 to $14 a hour in conditions which McGregor has said amounts to modern-day slavery.
Wairarapa rest home owner Trevor Marshall told Marcus Lush this morning that increased funding is the only way to see an increase in wages for staff.
When asked about the "silver tsunami" where it is estimated there will be two people working for every one retired, Prime Minister John Key told Marcus "You're making a lot of assumptions long before we get there... New Zealand might take a different view on migration, there might be a deluge of Filipino nurses that want to come in New Zealand".
Are increased funding and higher wages the only way to attract more staff to the industry? Will the "Silver tsunami" happen or will everyone move to Australia before then?