Adult Day Care Worker's Salary

Some adult day cares provide therapy.

Adult day care is a growing industry in the United States. The National Adult Day Services Association estimates that over 4,600 adult day centers operated in the country as of 2010. Adult day care workers provide helpful services to participants and family caregivers in the United States, and their salaries typically average about $30,000 per year, as of May 2010, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Social Service Assistants

The Bureau of Labor Statistics includes adult day care workers in the broader occupational category of social service assistants. The average annual salary of a social service assistant in the United States was $30,100 per year, or $14.47 per hour, as of May 2010, according to the BLS.

Salary Range

The 10th percentile made up to $18,780 per year, or $9.03 per hour, and the 25th percentile earned up to $22,510 per year, or $10.82 per hour, as of May 2010, according to the BLS. The median annual salary was $28,200, or $13.56 per hour. The 75th percentile earned up to $35,770 per year, or $17.20 per hour. The 90th percentile made at least $44,910 per year, or $21.59 per hour.

Location

Social service assistants working in Connecticut earned the highest annual average salary of $39,340 in the country, or $18.92 per hour, as of May 2010, according to the BLS. Those in Washington, D.C., followed close behind with an average yearly salary of $39,290 or $18.89 per hour. Social service assistants in California averaged $35,040 per year, or $16.84 per hour. Those in Alaska averaged $34,580 per year, or $16.63 per hour, and those in Maryland earned an average of $34,390 per year, or $16.54 per hour.

Worker Outlook

The 2010 MetLife National Study of Adult Day Services reported that adult day cares had one direct care worker for every six participants. This enables adult day centers to provide services for more individuals with complex health and mental conditions. In 2002, about 150,000 participants were served by adult day centers, but by 2010, that number had increased to 260,000, demonstrating the increasing use by family caregivers of adult day centers. As the adult day center industry grows, employment of direct care workers will also likely increase.

References

• National Adult Day Services Association
• Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wages – May 2010: Social and Human Service Assistants
• National Adult Day Services Association: MetLife National Study 2010
• MetLife.com: The MetLife National Study of Adult Day Services
• Bureau of Labor Statistics; Social and Human Service Assistants; December 2009