[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 303 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 303

  Recognizing the roles and the contributions of care workers in the 
United States and expressing support for the designation of April 2023 
                 as ``Care Worker Recognition Month''.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 18, 2023

Mrs. Dingell (for herself, Ms. Adams, Mr. Evans, Mr. Tonko, Ms. Craig, 
 Ms. Jacobs, Ms. Balint, Ms. Barragan, Ms. Kaptur, Ms. Velazquez, Mr. 
 Payne, Ms. Meng, Ms. Bush, Ms. Lois Frankel of Florida, Ms. Stevens, 
 Mr. Gomez, Mr. Veasey, Mrs. Watson Coleman, Mr. Schiff, Mr. Deluzio, 
  Ms. Lee of California, Ms. Jayapal, Mr. Allred, and Ms. Williams of 
Georgia) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 
   Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the 
   Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently 
   determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 
 provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Recognizing the roles and the contributions of care workers in the 
United States and expressing support for the designation of April 2023 
                 as ``Care Worker Recognition Month''.

Whereas there is a growing need on the part of families and individuals for care 
        and support, from childcare to services for older adults and people with 
        chronic illnesses or disabilities;
Whereas childcare workers provide the essential service of taking care of a 
        child's basic needs while fostering a child's early emotional, social, 
        and intellectual development;
Whereas direct care workers enable older adults, people with disabilities, and 
        children with complex medical needs to remain in their homes and 
        communities and live healthy, independent, and dignified lives by 
        providing support with critical daily tasks such as eating, dressing, 
        personal hygiene, and community activities such as working, going to 
        school, and engaging with neighbors and friends;
Whereas investment in care workers is vital to labor force participation and a 
        strong economy;
Whereas care workers give family caregivers the assurance their children, 
        parents, and loved ones are in the hands of professionals and that their 
        homes are being looked after;
Whereas care work is a profession that particularly benefits women, who account 
        for the majority of this workforce, and which enables other women to 
        participate in the labor force;
Whereas access to childcare and home and community-based care helps families 
        boost their economic stability by working for pay, taking fewer days 
        off, and pursuing opportunities to advance their education and careers;
Whereas when families are forced out of the labor market due to caregiving 
        responsibilities, they will experience diminished income, access to 
        benefits, and retirement savings over their lifetimes;
Whereas children who receive high-quality childcare are healthier, more likely 
        to graduate from college, and have higher incomes;
Whereas older adults who have home care and services available to them have 
        better health and a higher quality of life;
Whereas substandard wages and poor working conditions continue to fuel shortages 
        and high turnover in the care industry;
Whereas the median annual earnings for full-time childcare workers and home care 
        workers is less than $30,000, and as a result, nearly 1 in 6 home care 
        workers lives in poverty, and 1 out of every 3 childcare workers is 
        experiencing food insecurity;
Whereas COVID-19 both heightened the existing challenges and placed new stress 
        on care workers, leading to burnout and exhaustion;
Whereas the demand for home and community-based care services is growing because 
        the population of adults who are 65 and older will nearly double by 
        2050, while currently 10,000 people per day are turning 65;
Whereas 88 percent of aging adults prefer to receive long-term supports and 
        services in home and community-based settings;
Whereas across the United States, approximately 656,000 aging individuals and 
        people with disabilities are on waiting lists to access home and 
        community-based services through Medicaid;
Whereas home care jobs are the jobs of the future, with this workforce projected 
        to add more new jobs than any other single occupation in the country and 
        will add more than 1 million new jobs from 2020 to 2030;
Whereas home care is high-value work that provides services to millions of 
        people deserving high quality jobs that reflect their value;
Whereas unpaid caregiving economic value is estimated at $470,000,000,000;
Whereas turnover and shortages in the care workforce are costly to the economy 
        because they lead to higher costs for employers who need to continuously 
        hire and train new workers;
Whereas large-scale labor force exits due to childcare needs cost the economy an 
        estimated $57,000,000,000 annually in lost income, productivity, and tax 
        revenue;
Whereas investing in care infrastructure will lead to fewer staffing shortages 
        and higher productivity, while ensuring a more robust and stable 
        pipeline of workers for businesses; and
Whereas investing in direct care infrastructure specifically will result in 
        savings because it costs approximately $58,000 per person per year to 
        receive care and services in their homes in contrast to $90,000 per 
        person per year in semiprivate congregate settings: Now, therefore, be 
        it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) expresses support for the designation of ``Care Worker 
        Recognition Month'';
            (2) recognizes the roles and the contributions of America's 
        home care workers in providing the care necessary for older 
        adults and people with chronic illness or disabilities to live 
        independently and in dignity;
            (3) recognizes the role and contributions of America's 
        early educators and childcare workers in providing a nurturing, 
        enriching environment for children to grow and learn;
            (4) recognizes the roles and the contributions of America's 
        care workers in enabling caregivers the opportunity to pursue 
        educational attainment, and to remain in or reenter the 
        workforce;
            (5) recognizes that the care industry is crucial to 
        economic growth; and
            (6) thanks and promotes the profession of care workers.
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