The staff shortages in the care sector need more than a recruitment drive - Tom Page

A care staff shortage is piling pressure on the NHS, the annual Skills for Care report announced recently.

I work in this industry and I can confirm it has reached critical levels. We’ve had the perfect storm over the past 18 months which has led to the shortage.

Migrant workers have returned home due to Brexit or the pandemic, creating a lot of vacancies and the carers who stayed were worked off their feet. Care staff did not get furloughed, worked all the way through and many are now burnt out.

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The UK Government said a recruitment drive will help boost the workforce in our struggling industry but there are several underlying issues that a simple recruitment drive cannot address.

Library image of Prime Minister Boris Johnson during a visit to Westport Care Home in Stepney Green, east London,Library image of Prime Minister Boris Johnson during a visit to Westport Care Home in Stepney Green, east London,
Library image of Prime Minister Boris Johnson during a visit to Westport Care Home in Stepney Green, east London,

Carer pay is often poor. We pay £12/hour on a permanent salaried contract and this is well above the industry norm at £9-10/hour on zero-hour contracts. But pay alone does not attract good people. Being a carer is hard work. They often work alone, do a lot of driving and, ultimately, they are responsible for vulnerable people.

Staff retention for us is just as important as recruitment. Our employee turnover is around 5 per cent compared to the industry average which is 30 per cent.

Two of our current supervisors both started as home carers. That kind of career progression is very important to offer people. Many feel called to care work. They may have done years of unpaid care for a family member and love the bond that caring for another human being provides.

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But others simply have bills to pay. And I understand that. I’ve noticed fewer younger people applying for caring roles. If you just need to earn a wage, there are lots of other current vacancies in hospitality, retail and logistics. I understand why people choose to work in a supermarket instead as it arguably requires less physical and emotional involvement but, in my opinion, is not as fulfilling.

Three years ago I set up my own company, West Park Care, to support clients who want quality care for their nearest and dearest to allow them to live in their own homes. I’d gone through the rigmarole that many my age are faced with when I had to look for support for my grandfather. I was appalled at the standard of service and poor communication that seemed to be widespread across most providers and decided that I wanted to do it better.

What surprised me about the care sector is that it doesn’t take much to stand head and shoulders above the rest. Simply valuing employees, providing permanent salaried work, career progression, paying for travel time is all it takes. Things that would be taken for granted in any other industry.

For in the care sector, most people are on zero-hours contracts which means they can’t get mortgages or car loans. They have no guarantee of regular work and may only get their rota on the actual day they work.

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There is often little training and limited career progression. On top of that, carers usually don’t get paid for travel time which means they could work an eight-hour shift travelling between clients but only get paid for four hours. These are many basics those of us who work in offices would expect yet most who work in the sector accept that this is just how it is. I fundamentally don’t agree with this and I feel it has a massive impact on people wanting to enter the care sector.

During the pandemic, we clapped for carers and quite right too, they are our shadow heroes. But clapping was not enough. We need to hold a mirror up to what is going fundamentally wrong with the industry as a whole, value those who are called to the job and ultimately give our grandfathers and grandmothers the respectful support they deserve.

By Tom Page - Managing Director at West Park Care

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