Category: social care

A properly funded social care system would power growth, unlock jobs, boost business and save the NHS money, says a Future Social Care Coalition (FSCC) report published today (Monday).

The report, entitled Carenomics, lays bare how the fragmented and underfunded care sector, which currently has 152,000 job vacancies, is ‘stifling’ the economy and having a negative effect on the labour market.

The analysis warns that the government’s levelling up agenda and other measures to transform the UK cannot be achieved without substantial new investment in social care.

Carenomics uses extensive evidence to outline the economic case for putting more money into the care sector, which generated £51.5bn for the economy in England in 2021-22*.

The report says care staff are crucial to the UK labour force and economy. It calls for urgent intervention from ministers to attract and retain workers to an ‘overlooked’ sector that is bigger than electricity, water, and waste management.

At least four in five UK jobs pay more than those in social care. Official figures show that care staff with more than five years’ experience earn just 7p per hour more than colleagues who’ve been in the job for less than a year.

If investment in social care were boosted and more care workers recruited on better wages, it’s likely more people aged 50-64, currently unable to work because of caring responsibilities, could return to the labour market, says the report.

An increase of just 1% in the 50 to 64 age bracket in work could boost GDP by around £5.7bn per year, according to data in the Carenomics report.

Employment chances for disabled people would also improve if they had sufficient care support, says the report. Other benefits of investment in the care sector include a reduction in the carer’s allowance bill**.

Care worker Sam Thornton, who has been supporting people with learning disabilities for more than 30 years, said: “The job I do is as skilled as a nurse in a hospital but we’re not valued. The responsibilities we have are mind-blowing at times, people’s lives are in our hands.

“Social care has been in crisis for years. More investment is desperately needed to make the work more attractive to new staff.”

UNISON general secretary and joint FSCC chair Christina McAnea said: “A properly funded social care system should be the backbone of a thriving economy.

“But the government has allowed the sector to become underfunded and fragmented. It’s no wonder care staff are leaving for jobs where the pay and conditions are much better.

“More money for social care must be an urgent priority for the next government. This would take the pressure off an overstretched NHS, allow people caring for relatives to find jobs, help reduce social inequality and increase tax revenue for the exchequer.”

Notes to editors:
– *Economic research from Skills for Care calculated the sector contributed £51.5bn of economic activity in England in 2021/22.
– **The bill for carer’s allowance was £3.39bn in 2022/23, of which £3.36bn went to working age people (Source: Department for Work and Pensions)
– Click here to read Carenomics the report which will be handed in to 11 Downing Street, London SW1A 2AB on Monday 18 September at 3pm.
– The Future Social Care Coalition is an alliance of more than 80 organisations and individuals including private and other social care providers, charities and trade bodies, those who use social care, and unions.

Media contacts:
Fatima Ayad M: 07508 080383 E: f.ayad@unison.co.uk
Liz Chinchen M: 07778 158175 E: press@unison.co.uk

The article Government must invest in social care to drive the economy, says report      first appeared on the UNISON National site.

A properly funded social care system would power growth, unlock jobs, boost business and save the NHS money, says a Future Social Care Coalition (FSCC) report published today (Monday).

The report, entitled Carenomics, lays bare how the fragmented and underfunded care sector, which currently has 152,000 job vacancies, is ‘stifling’ the economy and having a negative effect on the labour market.

The analysis warns that the government’s levelling up agenda and other measures to transform the UK cannot be achieved without substantial new investment in social care.

Carenomics uses extensive evidence to outline the economic case for putting more money into the care sector, which generated £51.5bn for the economy in England in 2021-22*.

The report says care staff are crucial to the UK labour force and economy. It calls for urgent intervention from ministers to attract and retain workers to an ‘overlooked’ sector that is bigger than electricity, water, and waste management.

At least four in five UK jobs pay more than those in social care. Official figures show that care staff with more than five years’ experience earn just 7p per hour more than colleagues who’ve been in the job for less than a year.

If investment in social care were boosted and more care workers recruited on better wages, it’s likely more people aged 50-64, currently unable to work because of caring responsibilities, could return to the labour market, says the report.

An increase of just 1% in the 50 to 64 age bracket in work could boost GDP by around £5.7bn per year, according to data in the Carenomics report.

Employment chances for disabled people would also improve if they had sufficient care support, says the report. Other benefits of investment in the care sector include a reduction in the carer’s allowance bill**.

Care worker Sam Thornton, who has been supporting people with learning disabilities for more than 30 years, said: “The job I do is as skilled as a nurse in a hospital but we’re not valued. The responsibilities we have are mind-blowing at times, people’s lives are in our hands.

“Social care has been in crisis for years. More investment is desperately needed to make the work more attractive to new staff.”

UNISON general secretary and joint FSCC chair Christina McAnea said: “A properly funded social care system should be the backbone of a thriving economy.

“But the government has allowed the sector to become underfunded and fragmented. It’s no wonder care staff are leaving for jobs where the pay and conditions are much better.

“More money for social care must be an urgent priority for the next government. This would take the pressure off an overstretched NHS, allow people caring for relatives to find jobs, help reduce social inequality and increase tax revenue for the exchequer.”

Notes to editors:
– *Economic research from Skills for Care calculated the sector contributed £51.5bn of economic activity in England in 2021/22.
– **The bill for carer’s allowance was £3.39bn in 2022/23, of which £3.36bn went to working age people (Source: Department for Work and Pensions)
– Click here to read Carenomics the report which will be handed in to 11 Downing Street, London SW1A 2AB on Monday 18 September at 3pm.
– The Future Social Care Coalition is an alliance of more than 80 organisations and individuals including private and other social care providers, charities and trade bodies, those who use social care, and unions.

Media contacts:
Fatima Ayad M: 07508 080383 E: f.ayad@unison.co.uk
Liz Chinchen M: 07778 158175 E: press@unison.co.uk

The article Government must invest in social care to drive the economy, says report      first appeared on the UNISON National site.

Migrant staff coming to the UK to take up jobs in social care are being forced to pay back thousands of pounds in fees, housed in sub-standard accommodation and even forced to share beds with colleagues, says UNISON today (Monday).

To highlight this appalling treatment, the union has written to care minister Helen Whately warning of a ‘significant rise’ in reports of unacceptable treatment by unscrupulous employers towards workers from overseas.

In the letter, UNISON says the exploitation and ‘shocking abuse’ faced by skilled migrant workers – 58,000 of whom came to the UK to work in the care sector in the 12 months to March – can include huge charges to pay back ‘relocation costs’ if they wish to change jobs.

Social care employers often demand migrants pay large fees of up to £15,000 upfront for finding them a job and housing in the UK. But many end up in poor accommodation, then have rent deducted from their wages, according to the union.

The letter details one case where a care home employer chased a nurse for £14,000 after she resigned. The employee had raised concerns over exploitative treatment and standards of care.

Some have been paid for just a fraction of the hours they have worked or subjected to racist remarks, harassment, and intimidation if they complain about the treatment of the people they care for.

Others have worked for several months without being paid by their employers, who claim this is to recoup fees towards the cost of the migrant workers’ training or accommodation.

Care staff have told UNISON they’re expected to share bedrooms and, in some cases, even beds. They are also directed by their employers not to discuss the circumstances of how they came to be in the UK with anyone.

In the letter, UNISON says: “Sadly, this is inevitable in a sector that is built on poor terms and conditions for all care workers, including poverty wages, no proper sick pay, failure to pay for travel time and zero-hours contracts.”

The letter acknowledges the Prime Minister’s recent rejection of calls to scale back the visa route for social care, saying that this is “a tacit acknowledgment of how much these workers are doing to prop up a system in crisis. These workers deserve our praise, thanks, and good working conditions, not the outright exploitation many are facing.”

It continues: “Care worker ill-treatment is rife, irrespective of migration status. But unscrupulous employers have greater powers over migrant care workers, which leads to the most extreme and disgraceful practices.”

UNISON says in the letter that the problem is ‘systemic’, migrant workers ‘deserve to be treated with dignity and respect in compliance with UK employment law’, and the government has ‘a responsibility to intervene’.

This would “ensure the fair treatment of migrant workers who have come to help provide a vital public service”, the letter adds.

UNISON general secretary Christina McAnea said: “The government must stop unscrupulous care employers from luring overseas workers under false pretences, only to then exploit and harass them.

“These practices have no place in a modern society. Migrant staff deserve nothing but respect and dignity for coming to look after those who need care the most. This makes the case for why a national care service, that mirrors the NHS, is needed so urgently.”

Notes to editors:
– The government added ‘care workers’ and ‘home carers’ to the shortage occupation list for skilled workers in February 2022. This has enabled care providers to recruit directly from abroad to these roles. Nurses from overseas can also access visas to work in social care.
Case studies: Michael, a nurse who was asked to pay back several thousand pounds, said: “It was like modern-day slavery. I was just a commodity to my employer. I knew there might be costs to pay back but not such a high amount.”
– Agnes, a nurse whose employer didn’t pay her for her last few months at work, said: “The contract I signed was deceiving, it didn’t specify how much I’d have to pay back. My employer didn’t pay me for the last few months to recoup the money they claimed I owed them. They’d call on my day off to ask if what I was doing was important. The whole experience was devastating.”
– UNISON is the UK’s largest union with more than 1.3 million members providing public services in education, local government, the NHS, police service and energy. They are employed in the public, voluntary and private sectors.

Media contacts:

Liz Chinchen M: 07778 158175 E: press@unison.co.uk
Fatima Ayad M: 07508 080383 E: f.ayad@unison.co.uk

The article Migrant care staff in UK ‘exploited and harassed’ by employers, says UNISON  first appeared on the UNISON National site.

Migrant staff coming to the UK to take up jobs in social care are being forced to pay back thousands of pounds in fees, housed in sub-standard accommodation and even forced to share beds with colleagues, says UNISON today (Monday).

To highlight this appalling treatment, the union has written to care minister Helen Whately warning of a ‘significant rise’ in reports of unacceptable treatment by unscrupulous employers towards workers from overseas.

In the letter, UNISON says the exploitation and ‘shocking abuse’ faced by skilled migrant workers – 58,000 of whom came to the UK to work in the care sector in the 12 months to March – can include huge charges to pay back ‘relocation costs’ if they wish to change jobs.

Social care employers often demand migrants pay large fees of up to £15,000 upfront for finding them a job and housing in the UK. But many end up in poor accommodation, then have rent deducted from their wages, according to the union.

The letter details one case where a care home employer chased a nurse for £14,000 after she resigned. The employee had raised concerns over exploitative treatment and standards of care.

Some have been paid for just a fraction of the hours they have worked or subjected to racist remarks, harassment, and intimidation if they complain about the treatment of the people they care for.

Others have worked for several months without being paid by their employers, who claim this is to recoup fees towards the cost of the migrant workers’ training or accommodation.

Care staff have told UNISON they’re expected to share bedrooms and, in some cases, even beds. They are also directed by their employers not to discuss the circumstances of how they came to be in the UK with anyone.

In the letter, UNISON says: “Sadly, this is inevitable in a sector that is built on poor terms and conditions for all care workers, including poverty wages, no proper sick pay, failure to pay for travel time and zero-hours contracts.”

The letter acknowledges the Prime Minister’s recent rejection of calls to scale back the visa route for social care, saying that this is “a tacit acknowledgment of how much these workers are doing to prop up a system in crisis. These workers deserve our praise, thanks, and good working conditions, not the outright exploitation many are facing.”

It continues: “Care worker ill-treatment is rife, irrespective of migration status. But unscrupulous employers have greater powers over migrant care workers, which leads to the most extreme and disgraceful practices.”

UNISON says in the letter that the problem is ‘systemic’, migrant workers ‘deserve to be treated with dignity and respect in compliance with UK employment law’, and the government has ‘a responsibility to intervene’.

This would “ensure the fair treatment of migrant workers who have come to help provide a vital public service”, the letter adds.

UNISON general secretary Christina McAnea said: “The government must stop unscrupulous care employers from luring overseas workers under false pretences, only to then exploit and harass them.

“These practices have no place in a modern society. Migrant staff deserve nothing but respect and dignity for coming to look after those who need care the most. This makes the case for why a national care service, that mirrors the NHS, is needed so urgently.”

Notes to editors:
– The government added ‘care workers’ and ‘home carers’ to the shortage occupation list for skilled workers in February 2022. This has enabled care providers to recruit directly from abroad to these roles. Nurses from overseas can also access visas to work in social care.
Case studies: Michael, a nurse who was asked to pay back several thousand pounds, said: “It was like modern-day slavery. I was just a commodity to my employer. I knew there might be costs to pay back but not such a high amount.”
– Agnes, a nurse whose employer didn’t pay her for her last few months at work, said: “The contract I signed was deceiving, it didn’t specify how much I’d have to pay back. My employer didn’t pay me for the last few months to recoup the money they claimed I owed them. They’d call on my day off to ask if what I was doing was important. The whole experience was devastating.”
– UNISON is the UK’s largest union with more than 1.3 million members providing public services in education, local government, the NHS, police service and energy. They are employed in the public, voluntary and private sectors.

Media contacts:

Liz Chinchen M: 07778 158175 E: press@unison.co.uk
Fatima Ayad M: 07508 080383 E: f.ayad@unison.co.uk

The article Migrant care staff in UK ‘exploited and harassed’ by employers, says UNISON  first appeared on the UNISON National site.