Wages increase 5 to 6 percent for assisted living direct care workers

Average wages for assisted living direct care workers — certified nursing assistants, registered nurses, licensed practical nurse, medication aides and resident assistants — have increased by 5% to 6% per hour since last year, according to the “2023-2024 Assisted Living Salary & Benefits Report,” published by Hospital & Healthcare Compensation Service.

Although direct care workers in assisted living communities “saw another year of healthy rate increases,” the increases fall short of the increases seen in the previous couple of years. For example, according to the report, CNA hourly rates increased by 7.64% in 2021, 9.79% in 2022 and 5.69% in 2023. Nonetheless, recent average wage increases for direct care workers increased at a higher percentage than did salaries for assisted living CEOs, for whom the average increase was 2%.

Turnover rates declined for the second year in a row, according to the report. For instance, CNA turnover was 46.27% in 2021, 43.84% in 2022 and 41.88% in 2023. 

The 2023-2024 report indicated that the greatest caregiver turnover occurred among resident assistants / personal care assistants (47.1%), followed by licensed practical nurses (38.6%) and registered nurses (34.7%). 

Sign-on bonuses are used less frequently to attract new employees than they were during and immediately following the pandemic. In the most recent report, 56.99% of survey participants indicated that they offered sign-on bonuses to attract new employees.

The average sign-on bonus for RNs in 2023 was $4,454, LPNs received $3,460, on average, and the average sign-on bonus for CNAs was $2,218.

The 250-page report, now in its 26th year, is available for purchase on the HCS website. It covers 20 management and 30 non-management positions and is published in cooperation with LeadingAge and supported by the National Center for Assisted Living.

A total of 961 assisted living communities participated in the study, providing data on more than 63,000 employees. Data are current as of October.

The publication includes data from assisted living communities, personal care homes and residential care facilities for the elderly. Data are reported according to for‑profit and not-for-profit status, revenue size, unit size, state, core-based statistical area and geographic region. Also covered are 18 fringe benefits, projected salary increases for this year and more.