Tl;dr: I take care of developmentally disabled people in group homes and my big heart for these folks means the company takes advantage of me and other Direct Support Professionals big time. Anyone successfully unionize in this industry?
Let me start by saying I'm a super empath – I feel people's emotions energetically and I'm very sensitive to them. That is why I got into the industry of supporting individuals with developmental and physical disabilities in group homes. It is an extremely rewarding thing – helping people who are misunderstood by the majority of people. I love supporting them and showing them love that they may have never experienced before.
With that said, the government-subsidized company that I work for in charge of 7 group homes takes extreme advantage of the DSPs. We aren't paid enough as it is, and the company is always understaffed – not a lot of people want to do this very challenging job for poverty wages. Many of us are asked to do a 2-3 person job by ourselves, with no extra pay. We are also asked to do things above and beyond our job description – working 2 shifts/16 or more hours at a time alone supporting 3-4 developmentally and physically disabled adults with no extra pay being an example. And if you say no – expect a giant guilt trip about how “they don't know what they're going to do if you don't take the shift(s)”.
The company ends up attracting a lot of the wrong people who don't have enough empathy to care for vulnerable folks. I guarantee if they hired people at higher wages, they'd attract more compassionate people who want to be there. It makes me sick knowing this has got to be a nation-wide issue in this type of work. And anytime you want to talk about major issues happening in the home, the managers pretty much ignore you, forcing many DSPs to quit because they don't want to report to the county.
I'm a yes person, I'm always trying to help others with whatever I can, especially people who have been treated badly most of their lives -this is who I am. But this company gets away with a lot for that very reason – they know they can take advantage because of people with big hearts like me.
I've wanted to unionize, but have had a hard time finding any info about unionizing a govt-subsidized company, and have even contacted a local union several times, but was ghosted. I often wonder how much the corporate office makes. They should be fighting for a livable wage for us.
Anyways, I'm having a hard time because I know the people I support deserve better, deserve the best I can give them, but not at my expense – working way over my pay grade and feeling like if I don't go “above and beyond”, no one else will.
Sad and angry.