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Resolution of the County of Allegheny, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, requesting that the Pennsylvania General Assembly take steps to remedy the wage disparity that has arisen between County and other mental health and mental retardation workers by providing funding for a cost of living adjustment for County mental health caregivers in the Commonwealth's 2005-2006 budget.
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WHEREAS, the Allegheny County Office of Behavioral Health, through approximately 140 community-based agencies, provides, contracts for, and monitors services designed to meet the mental health needs of Allegheny County's citizens, providing services designed to respond effectively to immediate needs and, utilizing the strengths of individuals and families, empower people with mental illness and children/adolescents with serious emotional disturbance to live successfully; and
WHEREAS, communities in Allegheny County rely heavily upon County programs that assist individuals with mental health and developmental needs; mental health services were provided directly or through contracts with other providers to 43,179 individuals in fiscal year 2003-2004, many of whom depend upon such services for assistance that can be the most important or only factor that permits them to lead successful lives in the community; and
WHEREAS, the Allegheny County Office of Mental Retardation/Developmental Disabilities, in its 2005-2006 budget request, noted that wage rates have created difficulties in recruiting and retaining qualified staff members for over a decade, with wages paid by the state to mental health workers exceeding those paid by the County by 70 to 80 percent for comparable positions; and
WHEREAS, Allegheny County Council firmly believes that low pay makes it extremely difficult for the County to recruit, hire, and retain qualified staff, and that the County's comparatively low pay rate is currently jeopardizing care, as County-contracted care providers have already been fo...
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