Care and support workers should be paid at least £15 per hour to help tackle the cost of living crisis, a trade union has said today.
A new survey by Unite Scotland has found more than half of social care workers run out of money before their next pay day, with one in five not being able to afford to use energy at home.
Nearly one in ten workers are also skipping meals to save money, with 45% relying on credit cards or an overdraft to pay for essentials.
The union is calling for a £15 per hour minimum wage for the sector and urgent assistant with increased mileage costs and parking charges.
’It is absolutely shocking that Scotland’s dedicated, hard-working social care staff are paid so poorly that they are falling into debt, skipping meals and not heating their homes,’ said Unite Scotland’s deputy Scottish secretary, Mary Alexander.
’Something has gone very wrong when £1.45bn is being spent across the sector but the workforce is on poverty pay and is worried sick that corners are being cut on the service they provide to the vulnerable.’
