Who Cares? Attracting and Retaining Care Workers for the Elderly
This report presents the most up-to-date and comprehensive cross-country assessment
of long-term care (LTC) workers, the tasks they perform and the policies to address
shortages in OECD countries. It highlights the importance of improving working conditions
in the sector and making care work more attractive and shows that there is space to
increase productivity by enhancing the use of technology, providing a better use of
skills and investing in prevention.
Population ageing has outpaced the growth of workers in the long-term care (LTC) sector
and the sector struggles with attracting and retaining enough workers to care for
those dependent on others for care. Non-standard work is widespread, pay levels tend
to be lower than similar-qualification jobs in other health sectors, and LTC workers
experience more health problems than other health workers. Further, educational requirements
tend to be insufficient to perform more demanding and growing tasks of LTC. With growing
demand for care at home, better co-ordination between the health and long-term care
sectors and between formal and informal careers is needed.