New Jersey Releases Strategic Plan to Strengthen the Direct Care Workforce

A workgroup led by the New Jersey Department of Human Services has released a comprehensive strategic plan to strengthen the state’s direct care workforce—the essential workers who provide daily support and care to older adults, people with disabilities, and individuals with behavioral health needs.

The State of New Jersey Direct Care Workforce Strategic Plan is the product of a year-long collaboration facilitated by PHI through the Direct Care Workforce Strategies Center’s technical assistance program. The plan was heavily informed by collective input, including from the Essential Jobs, Essential Care New Jersey coalition, a diverse group of more than 100 organizations across the state, co-led by PHI and the New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute. As Governor Mikie Sherril begins her term, this plan serves as a blueprint for how the state can tackle the direct care workforce crisis.

Why this plan matters

The new strategic plan documents the scale of the direct care workforce challenges facing New Jersey. Across the state, the need for care and support is rising precipitously. For example, according to American Community Survey data, the number of residents with disabilities in the state reached over one million in 2023, and the plan notes a nearly 200 percent increase in individuals seeking to enroll in developmental disabilities services.

At the same time, the direct care workforce faces persistent job quality challenges. New Jersey’s direct care workers earn a median annual income of just $27,889. More than a third rely on public assistance programs, and 43 percent lack access to affordable housing. Poor job quality is driving workers to leave the field for other industries (like retail and fast food) and preventing employers from recruiting the workers they need to meet rising demand. These job quality challenges also exacerbate existing inequities as the workforce is predominantly female (86 percent) and people of color (82 percent), while more than half are immigrants.

The plan highlights significant growth for home health and personal care aide employment in New Jersey, putting a spotlight on growing demand as this workforce increased 76.8 percent between 2019 and 2023—from 57,060 to 100,860 jobs, and outpaced national growth during that same period. The state also implemented six wage increases for direct support professionals during former Governor Murphy’s eight-year Administration, totaling $6.50 per hour.

A Three-Pronged Approach

The strategic plan organizes more than 40 strategies into three categories:

• Gathering Data and Input: The plan emphasizes the need for better workforce data and ongoing engagement with workers, employers, and care recipients. Strategies include hosting ongoing listening sessions, establishing a Direct Care Worker Advisory Board, incentivizing participation in existing surveys, and advocating for the inclusion of direct support professionals in the federal Standard Occupational Classification system.
• Recruitment—Attracting Talent and Building Educational Pathways: Recruitment strategies focused on raising awareness of direct care careers, streamlining licensure processes, expanding training programs, and developing clear career pathways. A centerpiece recommendation calls for developing a universal training and certification system with stackable credentials, to allow workers to transfer skills across care settings and roles.
• Retention—Creating a Sustainable and Rewarding Workplace: Retention strategies address compensation, benefits, career advancement, and workplace supports. The plan recommends exploring structures for consistent wage increases tied to experience or qualifications, providing essential supports like transportation and childcare, and partnering with higher education institutions to create advancement opportunities.

The plan also includes nine employer-focused strategies that providers can implement to improve job quality, including establishing employee resource networks, providing mental health support, and creating internal career ladders.

“If we want New Jerseyans to live and age in their community with dignity, stability, and choice, we must ensure the workers who make that possible have the support, respect, and opportunities they deserve. This strategic plan reflects what we heard directly from families, workers, and providers across the state, and it outlines actions that will strengthen pathways into the field and better support workers on the job.” – Sarah Adelman, Former Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Human Services

Looking Ahead

The plan acknowledges that addressing the direct care workforce crisis will require sustained effort and investment. “While each strategy on its own makes an impact,” the plan notes, “a concerted effort to address the specific needs of the direct care workforce requires a systematic approach in which State agencies and other stakeholders work together to identify gaps and implement solutions.”

The strategic plan is ultimately a roadmap: it pairs concrete strategies with time horizons and identifies where outreach, policy changes, incentives, training, and technical assistance will be required. With Governor Mikie Sherrill’s administration, PHI will be working with state officials, the Essential Jobs, Essential Care New Jersey Coalition, and advocates across New Jersey to advance these strategies that treat direct care as the essential, skilled work it is.