Carers have had an enormously difficult task in caring for vulnerable people in society, with very little reward from the government.
A campaign has been launched dedicated to ending 15-minute visits and fee rates of £15 per hour, leading to unacceptably low pay rates for homecare workers in Northern Ireland. These 15-minute visits are much more common in Northern Ireland than places like England, and carers want to see them scrapped.
Carers also want to challenge the 'woefully inadequate' 34p increase to the hourly homecare rate announced by four of the five Health Trusts in Northern Ireland. This equates to an increase from £15.34 to just £15.68 per hour and means most homecare workers are paid at or just above the National Living Wage, despite the demands thrust upon them in their work.
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Carers have challenged the Minister for Health, Mr Robin Swann MLA, who has stated repeatedly that homecare workers deserve to be appropriately remunerated for their work. However, they believe that this flies in the face of reality.
The CEO of the Independent Health & Care Providers, Pauline Shepherd, said: “After the announcements of these unacceptable increases to the homecare rates in Northern Ireland, IHCP and UKHCA have jointly decided enough is enough.
“However well-intentioned these increases may have been, they are nowhere near the amount needed to sustain homecare workers in the current climate. These workers showed extraordinary bravery and resilience throughout the pandemic as they continued to put the needs of others before themselves. We are simply asking for fair contracts and fair rates for work which takes a toll on the workers involved.”
The CEO of UK Home Care Association, Dr Jane Townson said: "A cost-saving approach which requires providers to penny-pinch from all of their budget lines when the starting point is already so low is taking risks with the quality and safety of a regulated service.
"It also risks undermining the ability of providers to improve the working experience of careworkers, thereby further destabilising the workforce.
“Councils in England report a planned average hourly rate for homecare in 2021/22 of £18.49. This in itself is around £3 more than the amount offered in Northern Ireland, but still glaringly short of the amount required."
The petition supporting the careworkers '15' campaign can be signed here.
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