On April 30th the Goldie Floberg Family went to the State Capitol to meet with State Senators! At this time the team advocated for the current Care Campaign to increase DSP wages by $1.00 per hour. As an agency, the Floberg Center truly believes in the hard work and dedication that is done by our Direct Support Professionals! Thank you Senator Syverson, Senator Staddleman and Governor Quinn for your time, it is very much appreciated!

“We may be a small agency but we’re big with our actions”-Angelina Frometa, Quality Assurance Monitor

Below are some testimonials from Goldie Floberg staff explaining why we feel there is a need to increase the wages of Direct Support Professionals.

As a former DSP myself, I have nothing but immense respect for those individuals who dedicate countless hours to this worthy and challenging occupation. These amazing people are criminally under appreciated, a fact reflected by their extremely low wages. The field of social services is often the most convenient target when it comes to budget cuts. It’s true, agencies that serve individuals with disabilities will never be cash cows. But you cannot assign a monetary value to the betterment of human lives.

As a society, we are making great strides in breaking down the prejudices aimed at individuals with disabilities and working to ensure they have the full, meaningful lives they deserve. But we cannot continue this crucial undertaking without the support of our legislators.

You have a golden opportunity before you gentlemen, to not only refrain from making cuts to a field that already operates on a shoestring budget, but to take a positive, proactive step to show individuals with disabilities, and the people who love and care for them, that the men and women who represent them in government care about their wellbeing. I appreciate the complexities of your jobs and can only imagine the amount of painstaking effort that goes into putting together a budget for the state. I simply ask that you consider what I have written here and that you take stock of the words of countless other constituents who are fighting to make the wage Direct Support Professionals earn more commensurate with the noble and socially critical work they do.
David Rebelak, Quality Assurance Monitor/Information Technologist

I have served people with developmental disabilities since 2005. I have worked as a Direct Support Professional, a Shift Supervisor, a Home Manager, and now as a Community Living Director. As someone who has worked first hand with the people that we serve in this field, I can confidently say that it is imperative that Direct Care Staff receive the $1.00 wage increase to sustain their needs and continue to provide the excellent service that people with disabilities depend on. Please strongly consider this wage increase in the 2015 budget. Thank you.
Nathan Fry, Community Living Director

I’ve served people with developmental disabilities for over 18 years. I started my career working as a Direct Support Professional serving adults with developmental disabilities. I know from first hand experience how important and how challenging a DSP’s job is. It is unacceptable that people who have dedicated themselves to helping people with disabilities build lives of dignity and meaning have not received a wage increase from the state since 2007.
John Pingo, Ph.D. BCBA President/CEO