More than half of social care workers putting their health at risk during the coronavirus outbreak are paid below the real cost of living, according to an analysis of their working conditions. Staff are also four times more likely to be on a zero-hours contract than the average worker.
With care workers battling to help the vulnerable, there are renewed demands for a rethink of their pay. The Resolution Foundation think tank said that about half of frontline care workers, some 1 million people, were paid less than the real living wage of £10.75 an hour in London and £9.30 an hour across the rest of Britain. The figure, set by the Living Wage Foundation, is based on everyday living costs in the UK. Among the lowest rung roles in private care companies in England, as many as 90% of workers were paid below the real living wage last year. Tens of thousands also appear to be being paid illegally below the national minimum wage.
“Clapping is welcome, but care workers will value better pay and conditions even more,” the analysis states. “Better pay in care should have long been a priority given the vital role care workers play in protecting the vulnerable – delivering it now is the least we can do.”
Many care workers and providers were continuing to experience shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE) and access to testing this weekend, amid concerns in local government over the extent of the pandemic.
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2020/apr/19/half-of-frontline-care-workers-paid-less-than-living-wage
With care workers battling to help the vulnerable, there are renewed demands for a rethink of their pay. The Resolution Foundation think tank said that about half of frontline care workers, some 1 million people, were paid less than the real living wage of £10.75 an hour in London and £9.30 an hour across the rest of Britain. The figure, set by the Living Wage Foundation, is based on everyday living costs in the UK. Among the lowest rung roles in private care companies in England, as many as 90% of workers were paid below the real living wage last year. Tens of thousands also appear to be being paid illegally below the national minimum wage.
“Clapping is welcome, but care workers will value better pay and conditions even more,” the analysis states. “Better pay in care should have long been a priority given the vital role care workers play in protecting the vulnerable – delivering it now is the least we can do.”
Many care workers and providers were continuing to experience shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE) and access to testing this weekend, amid concerns in local government over the extent of the pandemic.
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2020/apr/19/half-of-frontline-care-workers-paid-less-than-living-wage
1 comment:
I understand this totally. I can see why people want or feel the need to clap. I have the same need and know that we feel better by joining in. It is a shame we have to. People who voted in Parliament against pay rises for health workers clap and make certain people see them doing so. The same people make money out of the system and at some level must recognise that they are pushing others down in order to make more money. That's what our economy does. That's why certain people argue that there has to be "trade off" between the spread of this killer virus and the economy. The presumption is that a thriving economy helps every-one thrive when it is more likely that the people who thrive are people at the top, the owners. Clapping is good but it does not answer fundamental falsehoods and dire inequalities.
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