Social care still offers enormous job satisfaction and workers put the reward of helping others far ahead of pay, a survey has found.
An exclusive survey for the Guardian Social Care Network, conducted in partnership with Scotland’s Institute for Research and Innovation in Social Services (Iriss), has found that, despite the pressures facing the sector, the vast majority (78%) of people working in social services in Scotland are happy in their jobs.
The self-selecting survey, The View from Here, was carried out earlier this year among more than 2,000 social care staff in Scotland. The majority of respondents worked in the statutory sector, perhaps reflecting that social care in Scotland has not been outsourced to the same extent as in England – although the private sector is still the biggest social care employer in Scotland.
The research paints a picture of a stable but ageing workforce, raising questions about long-term sustainability and the need to recruit younger staff. Eight in 10 were aged over 35, and 62% had worked in the sector for more than 10 years.
The survey also highlights the vocational nature of social care work. Three-quarters of respondents – who included social workers, managers, care workers and others – were motivated to work in a caring profession as they wanted to make a difference. This was closely followed by the 69% who wanted the opportunity to work with and support people (respondents could choose up to three answers). Only three in 10 were motivated by the regular income provided by their work.
Despite these positive findings, the sector is feeling the pressure. The majority of people (62%) said that they had to do additional work most weeks, and almost nine in 10 said that they’d seen a reduction in the amount of support available to service users.
One respondent summed up the general mood, saying: “Although I have said that I am happy in my job, this is more complex. I am happy in the sense that I thoroughly enjoy the essence of my job and working with clients. However, this is an extremely challenging time, in health and social care.” Another commented: “Staff are pushed more and more and more.”
Staff have also seen services redesigned, with 67% saying this had increased in the past year. This was particularly noted by staff in statutory services, where half had also seen a rise in partnership working. This suggests that attempts to integrate social care with other public services such as health and education are having an impact.
Peter Macleod, chair of Iriss, said: “Social services involves critical and life-changing work, which many in Scotland’s communities rely on. Understanding what motivates and challenges the people who care and support is necessary if we are to improve and develop services, as well as be innovative in what we do.”
Alan Baird, chief social work adviser at the Scottish government, said: “It is crucial that we hear from the workforce to understand what motivates them and also what challenges them in their day-to-day job. This survey gives us a really strong start at understanding what people working in social services think about their jobs, the services they are delivering, the context in which they are working and the challenges they are experiencing.”
Additional qualitative research undertaken by Iriss took an in-depth approach, asking 74 practitioners to submit a diary of a week at work. This found that work/life balance was an issue, with the vast majority of staff doing more than their contracted hours. Respondents were generally dissatisfied with their pay and conditions. Iriss also found evidence of in-work poverty for a small number of respondents.
As one person commented: “Work/life balance can fall out of kilter, especially when there are staffing issues and I feel obliged to cover extra shifts. This can start to feel stressful.” Another said simply: “A [care worker’s] wage isn’t great. Society values money more than people.”
- This article was amended on 30/10/2015 to clarify the fact that the private sector is the biggest social care employer in Scotland.
