Another parent of severely disabled children is heading to court seeking a ruling that his daughter and son are incapable of employing him.
Cliff Robinson, the parent of two adult children with intellectual disabilities has fought for a decent wage for fulltime parent caregivers over the last 15 years. The pay increase for caregivers gas gone up drastically but exclude people in his situation. Photo: RNZ/ Brad White
Cliff Robinson has joined Diane Moody in a bid to get the Employment Court to declare that the Ministry of Health employ them as carers of their severely disabled children.
Mrs Moody, 76, is taking her severely disabled son to court, saying she has no other option.
The parents want the court to rule there is no employment relationship between them and their children and that the role falls to the Ministry of Health.
Mr Robinson, 82, cares for his two adult children, John and Marita. He said the action was an opportunity to clarify a wretched situation.
He decided to join after receiving a needs assessment for 51-year-old Marita.
"She was going through a change of life, but she needed and expected a lot of emotional support.
"In the needs assessment I put this forward, the needs assessor recorded it well.
"Then the Ministry (of Health) said they would increase my hours from nine hours a week to 11 hours a week. So that was from one and a quarter hours a day to one and a half hours a day."
"It just really stuck in my craw, I thought 'this is just madness'."
Dianne Moody with her son Shane Chamberlain. Photo: RNZ/ Nick Monro
The parents also want the court to declare the Funded Family Care policy under which they are paid as discriminatory because parents are paid less than someone from outside the family would be if they came into the home to do the same work.
"If somebody came in here, the Ministry would pay the provider around probably $36 an hour and the person would be paid $25 an hour and we would be paid the minimum wage ($16.50 an hour)", Ms Moody said.
If the court did rule the policy discriminatory, the group would seeking compensation for lost wages.
Jane Carrigan, an advocate for the three severely disabled adult children who must now defend themselves in court, said the ministry had left the plaintiffs with no choice but to take what was ludicrous legal action.
"The Ministry of Health bang on constantly about treating people with intellectual disabilities, and disabilities in general, with dignity and care and respect.
"You're not treating somebody who is profoundly intellectually disabled with dignity when you, only for financial reasons, make that person an employer.
"They only have these people as the employer because it saves the Ministry of Health money.
"It's repugnant frankly, it's offensive the way they've managed the whole thing," she said.
Ms Carrigan, a long time critic of the Ministry of Health, is now a defendent alongside them in this action.
"I can't wait to sit next to the Ministry of Health as we sit before the Employment Court and listen to them explain how Shane, Johnny and Marita can possibly be employers," she said.
"That's one of life's beautiful ironies - I will be sitting right next to them."
The Ministry of Health has been asked for a response.
