Social care white paper fails to address staffing crisis or improve jobs - TUC

Commenting on the government’s social care white paper published today (Wednesday), TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said:

“Britain needs high-quality care and high-quality employment for those providing it. But the biggest problem for both care users and the burnt-out workforce is the staffing crisis caused by a generation of under-funding, fragmentation and privatisation.

“A credible plan for social care must transform the pay and conditions of the workforce. But the white paper fails to do that. And it has no answers for care workers who want to know when they will get a secure contract and a living wage.

“The health minister said private sector provision is the obstacle to professionalising care work. The answer is staring her in the face - we need a publicly owned and run national care service. That way every penny will go into improving services and working conditions, instead of private profits.”