This week I addressed the Pay Fair for Care Day of action, organised by the Future Social Care Coalition. When I’ve met with care home managers and staff during the pandemic, it’s been clear that the pandemic has put new strains on an already stretched workforce.
We came into the pandemic with an estimated 112,000 staff shortage in the sector and more than 1.5 million adults with unmet needs. Care homes were devastated in the early phases of the pandemic as the Government discharged hospital patients into homes without tests and failed to provide staff with PPE.
The pandemic has been a reminder of who does the really useful work in our society. We need a long-term strategy to fix social care. This starts with a pay rise to ensure no worker is earning less than a real living wage.
The average care worker earns just £8.50 an hour to do one of the most difficult jobs in the country. Care workers have been overworked, overlooked and undervalued for too long. It’s time to pay fair for care.
To this end, FSCC are proposing a £3.9billion Emergency Carers Support Fund. You can sign their petition here: https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/561831