Successive governments of every hue have failed to deal with social care. The elections hustings have done nothing to suggest any change. The outgoing government party ignores its broken promises, the would-be government is already setting out its excuses.
The ongoing crisis in social care continues. It affects those in need of care and their families, and ties up health service resources. And appalling exploitation of migrant workers in the sector is rampant.
Last November, Unison produced evidence about the treatment of migrant workers by unscrupulous social care employers, highlighting the way that government failure and inaction has led to the present state of the care system.
Unison general secretary Christina McAnea said, “Only when care workers get decent pay will more people want to work in the sector and the staffing crisis end.”
Now we find Labour promising, if elected, to implement a paltry £12 an hour minimum wage for the 1.5 million care workers. This level of pay is insulting. Not much better is the call of the unions representing some care workers, including the GMB, that the minimum wage for them should be £15 an hour – and that still doesn’t ensure parity with NHS staff.
Care work requires skill but there has been no pressure on British employers from any government to invest in British care workers as that gives people power. Instead employers and their governments prefer the easy hire and fire of precarious workers from outside the country.