Kick in the teeth for essential care staff

I welcomed the Chancellor’s recent pledge to reward almost 900,000 public sector workers with an above-inflation pay rise for their important role in the fight against Covid-19.

However, I was disappointed to see that more than one million social, care and support workers were not included in this announcement.

When the pandemic began in March, the Government described care workers as “essential” to keeping the country running during lockdown. Every day, these people have put their lives on the line to help others and, sadly, their exposure to the virus and a shocking lack of PPE means many of them lost their lives.

Over the last few years, I have surveyed thousands of social care workers as part of my research, and despite objectively having one of the most stressful jobs in the country, they rarely ask for a pay rise. However, during the pandemic, care workers have stepped up to the plate like never before, not only putting their own health and safety at risk, but that of their families too. In some cases, care workers have even had to leave the family home to protect their loved ones.

The decision to omit social workers, care and support workers from this pay rise announcement is a painful kick in the teeth for a sector which has played such a vital role during this national crisis and it is my view that to honour those who’ve lost their lives, Government should fairly reward those still working on the front line. Jermaine Ravalier Reader in Work and Wellbeing (Psychology) and co-director of the Psychology Centre for Health and Cognition at Bath Spa University