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homecare.co.uk 2019
1
Workforce Survey
homecare.co.uk 2019
Workforce Survey
homecare.co.uk 2019
2
Workforce Survey
The inaugural homecare.co.uk annual
Workforce Survey is being published in a
climate where care workers are delivering
care to an increasing number of people
with complex care needs, as well as having
to deal with the ramifications of complex
social and political challenges.
homecare.co.uk has commissioned this
survey to bring to light care workers’ view
on the current state of the industry, the
key challenges they face and what the
future looks like.
At a time when resources are stretched
and more people than ever are needing
care in their home, homecare.co.uk is the
leading home care reviews site for those
making important care decisions for
themselves or loved ones.
homecare.co.uk 2019
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Workforce Survey
Our first homecare.co.uk survey throws a spotlight on the humanity of the home care
workforce.
It is testament to their compassion and altruism, that despite often low wages and
poor job security, 94% of care workers say they enjoy their job and a huge 81% have no
intention of leaving the profession.
Interestingly, improving the value and status of care work is nearly as important to them
as increasing their pay, with 37% wanting the status of care work to be boosted and 45%
wanting a rise in pay.
Home care workers are crucial to society, doing work that is mentally and physically
demanding and we need to value them and celebrate the work they do by giving them
the pay and status they deserve.
Eighty-four per cent of home care workers in the UK are women and they are bearing
the brunt of the government’s inability to fix the social care funding crisis.
Just over two-thirds of home care is commissioned by councils with limited budgets, so
care workers’ pay is very much dictated by the fees paid by local authorities to the 9,000
home care agencies in the UK.
It is extremely sad that just over a quarter of home care workers are still carrying out
15-minute visits to the most vulnerable in society due to councils only paying for ‘flying
visits’. People requiring home care tend to be trapped in their homes, isolated and lonely
and their care worker is often their lifeline to the outside world. These people need to
be treated with compassion not treated like a tick-box exercise.
Sue Learner, editor of homecare.co.uk said:
homecare.co.uk 2019
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Workforce Survey
Key Findings
• Care workers have strong opinions on
what constitutes a proper standard of care – with 81% believing there
should be a compulsory minimum of
30 minutes for every care visit
• The current environment for care workers is tough for a variety of
reasons involving pay, contracts and
working conditions:
» Economically care workers
suffer, with 26% of care
workers not being paid the real
living wage and – despite the
issue being a well-publicised
problem – 38% still not being
paid for travel time
» Job security is low with 65% of
care workers working for care
home agencies that use zero-
hours contracts
» Care workers also face a higher
risk of being mistreated than
most other professions – with
65% reporting verbal abuse
and a shocking 34% having
received physical abuse while
carrying out their role
• There are short term challenges that
must be tackled, with the majority
of care workers believing that Brexit will have a detrimental impact on the provision of care workers in the home, with 47% saying Brexit will
harm the sector in this regard (25%
believing it won’t make a difference
and 28% unsure)
• Keeping an eye on future challenges,
78% of care workers warned against the use of robots caring for the elderly, with 48% citing worries about
the negative impact this might have
on their own jobs
• Despite their valid concerns, care workers continue to be dedicated workers, with 94% enjoying the work
they do and the majority – 81% – not
looking to leave the profession
• In order to attract more people to work in care, 45% would like to see an
increase in pay, 16% think there needs
to be better training and career paths
and 38% want the profile and prestige
of care work to be raised.
homecare.co.uk 2019
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Workforce Survey
Standards of care must be maintained
Since a freedom of information request in 2013 revealed that
two-thirds of local councils were commissioning 15 minute visits
to people requiring care in their home, it has been widely viewed
in the industry that this is not enough time to deliver good
care and the practice is unacceptable. It is therefore extremely
disappointing that our report found that 27% of respondents
are still providing 15 minute care visits. What’s more, with 81%
believing that the minimum visit duration should be at least 30
minutes, care workers are clearly being forced to work within
constraints that they know are not optimal for the people they
are caring for.
Despite national outrage and the widely
held knowledge that you cannot provide
effective care in such a short timescale, 27%
of care workers are still ordered to carry out 15 minute visits
Do you think there should be a minimum
time of 30 minutes for home care visits?
Yes No Unsure
81%
13%
6%
homecare.co.uk 2019
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Workforce Survey
Care workers are working in increasingly challenging conditions
Looking at the data in our Workforce Survey it’s clear that the austerity policies of the
current government have had a direct impact on the working lives of care workers, with
pay and ‘flying visits’ being dictated by cash-strapped councils.
Pay
Another long-standing problem facing
home care workers is whether they are
paid for travelling time between visits
and it is scandalous to see 38% of care
workers are still not being paid for this.
This is not only unfair, but has the effect
of driving down care standards, as care
workers have to decide how best to use
the time they have with people, rather
than tending to all their needs.
The reality is that many care workers
work additional hours unpaid to ensure
the correct level of care is delivered. With
this in mind it is a disgrace that just over
a quarter (26%) of care workers are not
even earning the real Living Wage and this
must be addressed.
The Impact of the Living Wage
Case Study: Penrose Care, London
“The real Living Wage is the cornerstone
of Penrose Care’s ethical workplace
initiatives. We have implemented it as
an effective guarantor for delivering
consistently outstanding social care. The
real Living Wage helps promote a culture
that delivers high levels of customer
service.
When Penrose Care became an Accredited
Living Wage Employer in 2012, the Living
Wage in home care was a rarity. These
survey results - which show increased
adoption of the Living Wage show the
positive results of heroic work from the
likes of my organisation, Penrose Care,
as well as the UNISON labour union, and
civil society organisations Citizens UK and
the Living Wage Foundation. The results
are improved livelihoods of hard-working
home care workers and in my view,
improved outcomes for the elderly and
disabled persons we support.”
- Robert Stephenson-Padron, Managing Director of Penrose Care in London
homecare.co.uk 2019
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Workforce Survey
Travel time
"It is unacceptable that some providers still do not pay travel time. Travel time is not
an additional benefit but a legally required part of community care workers' pay. The
guidance and enforcement of this must become stronger."
- Karolina Gerlich, Chief Executive of NACAS (National Association of Care and Support Workers)
Job security
In the era of austerity, the ethics surrounding zero-hour contracts have made the
headlines, as many cited reduced job security, whilst others argued they are a tool of
flexibility. The use of these contracts is still hugely prevalent in the care sector, with 65%
of respondents saying their agency uses them. Reflecting the debate on this issue, the
homecare.co.uk survey shows the issue of zero-hours contracts is as divisive in the care
work force, with 47% agreeing with these contracts as tools of flexible working, whilst
41% take the opposing view.
"Different options of contracts should be offered to care workers. Zero-hours contracts
work if both sides understand the need and allow for flexibility and work together. Zero-
hours contracts are unacceptable when they are used by providers as a way of keeping
more people on for the benefit of extra availability, but create anxiety in care workers
who then do not know how much they are going to earn next week."
- Karolina Gerlich, Chief Executive of NACAS (National Association of Care and Support Workers)
Do you agree with zero hour contracts
because of the flexibility?
Yes No Unsure
0
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
Yes No Not applicable
47%41%
12%
65% 22% 13%
Does your home care agency have zero
hour contracts?
homecare.co.uk 2019
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Workforce Survey
Abuse
Two of the more shocking statistics from
our survey were the levels of abuse
care workers have encountered. Whilst
it is understandable that care workers
may encounter a level of aggression
due to frustration and confusion in
comparison to other professions, with
34% experiencing physical abuse and 65%
being verbally abused, we need to ensure
all care workers feel safe in their working
environment.
"The level of abuse experienced by care
workers is worrying. We cannot expect
care workers to deliver care with dignity
and respect if they do not receive it back.
Safeguarding training must look more at
the rights and safeguarding of staff in
social care as well as people who receive
care. Nobody should experience abuse at
work."
- Karolina Gerlich, Chief Executive of NACAS (National Association of Care
and Support Workers)
Dementia Training
“If employers don’t take responsibility to provide their teams with the knowledge they
need to effectively do their jobs, the most vulnerable in society will suffer.”
- Chloe Mahtani, Bluebird Care’s Head of People Development, Engagement and Culture
Have you suffered verbal abuse during
your job?
Yes No
65%
35%
homecare.co.uk 2019
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Workforce Survey
Short-term challenge: the impact of Brexit on the home care sector
The social care and health sectors have become increasingly
reliant on the hard work of EU migrants, so it is no surprise that
the majority of care workers polled thought Brexit will have a
negative impact, with 47% believing it will result in reducing the
number of available care workers. Mirroring the uncertainty in
many other sectors, 25% believed Brexit would have no effect
and 28% were unsure what the impact will be.
“Unless the Home Office comes up with an extremely fast special
visa regime, as in one day or less, for social care prior to Brexit,
then Brexit is likely to have a severe negative impact on social care
in light of an already existing labour shortage and the prospect of
local workers retiring or exiting and not being replaced by local
workers. Such visas are likely to be unattractive to prospective
workers unless they provide a clear and guaranteed pathway to
permanent residency.”
- Robert Stephenson-Padron, Managing Director of Penrose Care in London
Do you think Brexit will harm the home
care sector by reducing the number of
available care workers?
Yes No Unsure47%
28%
25%
homecare.co.uk 2019
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Workforce Survey
Long-term challenge: ensuring tech innovation benefits the sector
Living in a society where the number
of people living into old age with more
complex health conditions is on the
increase, it’s important to look ahead to
consider how we can harness technology
in the right way. The use of robots to
care for the elderly in home care is a
contentious issue. Those in favour argue
it has the potential to save money and
improve efficiency, but for the care
workers on the frontline that we spoke
to, 78% were against the introduction
of care robots. People working in home
care believe there needs to be a level
of personalised care that a robotic
replacement would struggle to replicate.
In addition to this, 48% expressed a worry
that they would lose their job as a result
of increased automation of the sector.
“Technology has real potential to drive
positive change in the care sector but we
must draw a line to ensure that we don’t
remove the ‘human’ side of caring. We
believe that technology should be used
to ‘enhance’ the care being delivered, but
it will never replace it.
Combining high-tech with high-touch
means that we can drive higher quality care
which is even more bespoke to an individual
but without removing the personal touch.
It’s about ensuring technology is used as
a catalyst for improved connectivity and
empowerment.
“Technology like care robots could well
be used in future, but not in isolation – we
believe the human touch will always be
needed.”
- Martin Jones, CEO of Home Instead Senior Care UK
Would you support the idea of ‘care-
bots’/robots caring for the elderly?
Yes No Unsure78%
12%
10%
homecare.co.uk 2019
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Workforce Survey
Despite testing times, our first Workforce Survey clearly shows
that care workers are incredibly resilient and passionate about
the work that they do, with 94% reporting that they enjoy their
job and 81% not currently looking to leave the profession.
Care workers still care – but how do you attract more people into the profession?
Do you enjoy your job?
Yes No
Are you considering leaving the
profession?
Yes No
94%
6%
81%
19%
homecare.co.uk 2019
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Workforce Survey
Nevertheless, it is vital the industry
focuses on how to recruit and retain more
care workers and our survey outlines the
majority of care workers believe improved
pay and a greater level of respect for the
profession is critical in helping to deliver
this.
“We know that care assistants are
incredibly dedicated and passionate
about what they do and in most cases it’s
not the role itself that leads to people
leaving the profession, but social and
economic factors.
“The industry needs to identify these
problems and look at what can be done to
ensure more care workers are staying in
the profession they love.”
- Chloe Mahtani, Bluebird Care’s Head of People Development, Engagement
and Culture
0
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
How can we best attract more people to work in care?
Increase pay Provide better
training and career
paths
Raise the profile and prestige of the profession
45% 18% 38%
