News Raises for DORS Personal Assistants Take Effect Today!
Per the contract we ratified last year, the base wage for DORS Personal Assistants goes up to $19.50/hour effective January 1, 2026!
Wages for Personal Assistants (PAs)
| Date | Hourly Wage Rate | Amount of Increase |
| July 1, 2025 | $18.75 | $.50 |
| January 1, 2026 | $19.50 | $.75 |
| July 1, 2026 | $20.00 | $.50 |
| January 1, 2027 | $20.75 | $.75 |
Wages for Maintenance Home Health (MHH) Providers
| Hourly Wage | July 1, 2025 | Jan 1, 2026 | July 1, 2026 | Jan 1, 2027 |
| CNA | $21.75 | $22.50 | $23.00 | $23.75 |
| LPN | $28.75 | $29.50 | $30.00 | $30.75 |
| RN | $35.50 | $36.25 | $36.75 | $37.50 |
These latest raises will be reflected on February 13th paychecks covering hours worked from January 1-15, 2026.
Seniority Add-ons
As a reminder, our paychecks now include new columns that indicate cumulative hours of service toward the seniority add-on. Here’s how seniority add-ons are calculated:
| Milestone | Hours Worked | Rate Add-on (Extra Pay Per Hour) |
| 0 | 0 – 9,999 | Not eligible |
| 1 | 10,000 – 19,999 | $1 / hour |
| 2 | 20,000 – 29,999 | $2 / hour |
| 3 | 30,000 or more | $4 / hour |
The milestones are based on 10,000-hour thresholds or “milestones.” For example, a DORS worker who has averaged 40-hour work weeks for 5-years will meet the milestone for 10,000 cumulative service hours and get a $1/hour seniority add-on in addition to the base wage, which will bring their hourly rate to $20.75/hour.
This is a big step forward made possible by DORS workers uniting through our union to win this groundbreaking contract!
We fought hard to make sure that our years of service are acknowledged and rewarded in our pay, and this will help veteran Personal Assistants stay in the profession.
Training Requirements
Don’t forget about the new training requirements that took effect last year!
New training requirements took effect in January 2025, and the state of Illinois began outreach last year to both new hires and incumbent Personal Assistants to sign up for our required trainings.
New hires will have 90 days, or 3 months, after their start date to complete their paid required training. Those of us already working in the program will have 4 months from our anniversary date to register for our mandatory annual training.
Failure to register for these trainings carries the risk of being temporarily suspended from providing services! Please look out for a letter in the mail, a phone call, and text messages when it’s your turn to register for your class.
These paid trainings are valuable opportunities to develop on-the-job skills with fellow home care workers, and we encourage everyone to stay vigilant about registering for and completing these trainings so we don’t face a temporary suspension!
Click here for more information about the new training requirements.
Congratulations on your new raise and stay tuned for future updates on our work to establish a retirement benefit!