How much should I be getting paid for live-in care giver?
Hi, I live in North Dakota. I take care of an 82 year old man who has a prostetic leg, glass eye, pacemaker, & alzhimers. I am his ONLY care giver as he is very stubborn. Stubborn enough in fact that his wife moved out of his home 8 1/2 years ago. She hired me to take care of him. She told me that she would give my $3000 a month if I would move in here and take care of him. Well on the 3rd of Dec 2007 I moved in. I give him his meds & eye drops, put his leg on give him baths, shave him, cut his hair,cook, clean, do laundry, order his meds, and I was taking him to any appointments (until his wife came and took the van over to her house). I also pay for ALL the groceries out of my wages!! I eat once a day, he eats like a horse. Well since Dec 3rd when I moved in here, I have had the following times off 1-29 hour shift, 1-10 hour shift, 1-34 hour shift (my folk's 50th Anniversary), 1-9 hour shift, 1- 7 hour shift, & 1-6 hour shift for a total of 95 hours off. I haven't been able to spend any holidays with my family. And I have NEVER seen a check for more then $2500. I called the North Dakota Labor Board & Job Service of North Dakota today and they told me that I should be getting paid $9-$11.11 an hour and I should not have to be the one to pay for the groceries. I also pay for the internet. She pays the lights, and cable as he lives and sleeps in his recliner in front of the TV. He refuses to sleep in a bed. Two weeks ago she tells me that she is putting his house up for sale and moving him to a nursing home. Then she desides to put her place up for sale too and plans to buy a condo and move herself and him into it. Well a couple of days ago, her place sold. I will be homeless in a couple of weeks and be unemployed and broke as she pays me in advance for the month. I want to know how much she should owe me. I am really getting burnt out as I am the only one taking care of him 24-7. I even had to buy and install one of the light fixtures in one of the closest as she wasn't doing anything about it. :( :confused: