The staffing shortage is so severe it has restricted our region’s ability to get people experiencing homelessness off the streets even after we have created new housing for them to live in. A 2022 King County Regional Homelessness Authority survey found the five largest homelessness service providers in King County had more than 300 vacant positions they could not fill. This pay inequity undermines Seattle’s ability to address the homelessness crisis. Those who leave human services for other work get a seven percent increase in net pay, within just a year of leaving. Workers on the frontlines addressing our region’s most urgent challenges, including homelessness, domestic violence, childcare, hunger, and elder care, are not paid fairly.Ī recent University of Washington Study found nonprofit human services workers are paid 37 percent less than workers in other industries, despite the fact their work is not easier, not less skilled, nor less demanding. If we expect Seattle to respond effectively to homelessness, we can’t tie the hands of HSD by funding only low wages,” she continued. Without doing so, our City’s Human Services Department (HSD) will fall further behind, competing to hire the same pool of workers as King County, but offering lower wages.
“This is a major step toward fair pay for the life-saving services they provide. We rely on them to tackle the city’s biggest crises, from homelessness to hunger, childcare and elder care,” said Councilmember Herbold. These workers are on the streets every day helping people in their hour of greatest need.
“It is impossible to end our homelessness emergency without fully staffing and fairly paying human services work.
The resolution also requests that other public and private funders also produce recommendations to collectively address wage equity before Council’s budget deliberations this fall. The Seattle City Council passed a resolution, sponsored by Councilmember Lisa Herbold (District 1 – West Seattle and South Park), declaring the Council’s intent to consider funding equitable wage increases for human services workers to address the city’s staffing crisis.
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