Q&A: The healthcare industry is segregated. Here’s how one organization is trying to change that
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There are few industries as rife with inequity and occupational segregation as health care, where 79% of workers in low-wage health services jobs are women and more specifically, Black women, Latinas, and immigrants. These entry-level healthcare workers are pQ&A: The healthcare industry is segregated. Here’s how one organization is trying to change that
There are few industries as rife with inequity and occupational segregation as health care, where 79% of workers in low-wage health services jobs are women and more specifically, Black women, Latinas, and immigrants. These entry-level healthcare workers are paid poverty wages and are ineligible for benefits, including paid sick leave. One organization is trying to change this. The Healthcare Career Advancement Program (H-CAP) is a national labor management organization comprising healthcare employers and Service Employees International Union (SEIU) locals who provide programs, trainings, and educational opportunities to healthcare workers historically locked out of higher paying union jobs. Of particular interest is enrolling Black and brown healthcare workers into registered apprenticeship programs that provide the skills and training needed to be considered for management positions. According to Daniel Bustillo, a former unionized healthcare worker and H-CAP’s executive director, almost all of the healthcare industry’s major inequities fall across race and gender lines. Bustillo recently spoke to Prism about dismantling institutional barriers, the importance of apprenticeship programs, and the fight for long-term care workers. Our conversation has been condensed and edited. Read more