A further suspension of the minimum wage enforcement in the social care sector has been announced by the Government.

Earlier this year, a tribunal ruled that employers were wrong to pay support workers a flat-rate for sleep-in shifts rather than an hourly wage.

However, the Government has suspended the enforcement action for another month following concerns that wage arrears could affect the stability of providers.

The Voluntary Organisations Disability Group (VDOG) VODG said it was seriously concerned about the impact the ruling could have on sleep in services, but was 'frustrated' about the lack of progress on finding a solution.

VODG chair Steve Scown said: ‘The decision to pause is worrying as for each month that goes by providers are continuing to work with a potential unknown back pay bill with no clear indication about future funding arrangements.’