Scores of homecare workers and their supporters picked the Social Concern Community Development Agency in Laurelton, Queens yesterday to demand that the company make good on delinquent benefit payments and maintain workers’ healthcare coverage.

Social Concern employs 500 workers and received notice earlier this year that if they didn’t catch up on benefit payments, 1199SEIU-represented homecare workers at the agency would begin losing their coverage today – March 26. That would be catastrophic for many of the workers who rely on their affordable Union healthcare to pay for medications to treat chronic conditions.

“We don’t make a lot of money. I only make $309 every two weeks,” said Maitland. “I have to take expensive medication for a thyroid problem and now they want us to work without healthcare? We can’t live on that.”

Shirley Willacy, a home health aide at Social Concern for 34 years, says the benefits are critical in keeping caregivers healthy and able to provide the best care. While waiting for Social Concern’s response to their action, workers made it clear they would keep the pressure the agency to live up to its responsibility.

“We work with sick people and run into all kinds of cases in our work. We won’t be able to take care of them if we aren’t well ourselves,” says Willacy. “We’re out here because Social Concern has to be held accountable for the health of its workers.”

For more information or to learn about how you can get involved in the fight for justice at Social Concern, log on to www.1199seiu.org/wherestheconcern.