Last Thursday (July 2), Park Place reported that skilled nursing facility (SNF) employment gained 3,300 jobs in the month of June to reach 1,586,600 jobs, a positive report especially considering the sluggish national numbers released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

Now, a few days later, it turns out that these job gains in June pushed employment in SNFs above pre-pandemic levels recorded in February 2020, a big milestone for the sector, according to an announcement by the American Health Care Association (AHCA).

"There is no magic number when it comes to staffing our nursing homes. But today's milestone is a testament to the relentless efforts of long-term care providers who have never stopped investing in their people," said Clif Porter, president and CEO of AHCA. “Supporting our caregivers means supporting our residents, and strengthening our workforce will remain at the forefront for America’s nursing homes.” 

AHCA said compared to other healthcare sectors, nursing homes were the hardest hit by the nation’s worker exodus during the COVID-19 pandemic and were the slowest to recover.

Quite a Recovery

After hitting a low in 2022 and losing 14 percent of its workforce, nursing home employment levels took four years to recover to pre-pandemic numbers.

"We're proud to have regained the jobs lost during the pandemic, but recovering our workforce is not the same as solving the workforce crisis," Porter said. 

"The demand for caregivers is growing faster than the available labor pool, and providers across the country continue to face recruitment and retention challenges every day. That's why we must build on this momentum in partnership with policymakers by investing in the caregiver workforce of tomorrow through innovative, commonsense solutions."

Through its Caregivers for Tomorrow initiative, AHCA and sister organization, the National Center for Assisted Living, advocate for policies that strengthen the long-term care workforce. AHCA/NCAL supports multiple pieces of legislation that would help train more certified nursing assistants and RNs, as well as expand legal pathways for international caregivers to work in long-term care in the U.S., among other pieces of legislation.

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Comments or questions on this article? Please contact Patrick Connole at pconnole@parkplacelive.com.