Providers, agencies urge Legislature to eliminate pay gap for community human‑service workers

Providers and human‑service agency leaders told the Joint Committee on Children, Families, and Persons with Disabilities on Tuesday that legislation (H.223 / S.130) to equalize wages for community‑based human‑service workers would address a persistent pay gap that is destabilizing care across the Commonwealth.

The bill, supporters said, would eliminate differences between rate‑setting benchmarks used for private community providers and pay for similar state‑employed roles through a phased approach ending on July 1, 2029.

The Sponsors’ bill matters because the Commonwealth is the largest purchaser of community human services and supporters said current rate benchmarks leave many nonprofit workers earning materially less than state counterparts for the same work. Bill Jelenack, president and CEO of the Providers Council, said the disparity creates a…