- Conference
- 2022 Local Government Service Group Conference
- Date
- 15 February 2022
- Decision
- Carried
Conference applauds the work carried out by care workers across the UK throughout the Covid pandemic and beyond and recognises the work done across UNISON in supporting our members and establishing ourselves as the union for the care workforce.
Conference notes that despite the increasing recognition of the need to bring change to our care systems throughout the UK, there is still little to no appetite from those in government (UK or devolved) to embrace the idea of public ownership and provision of care.
Conference condemns the total lack of ambition in the Westminster government’s social care white paper which will do very little to improve the working conditions of care workers across England or seek to change the failed model of outsourced/privatised delivery of care. Conference is also disappointed by the ambitions of the Scottish government’s National Care Service to significantly remove council control and involvement in the delivery of social care (this may change depending on consultation outcome).
Conference also notes that there has been little progress from local councils, albeit in part due to financial restrictions, in bringing care workers back in-house, but applauds the work of UNISON branches where this has happened in places such as East Ayrshire and Cheshire West and Chester. Conference reaffirms that critically important services like social care cannot be left to the market, and must be delivered in-house.
Conference notes that whilst the public profile of care workers has finally started to rise, thanks in large part to the work of UNISON, there is still not enough recognition and understanding of the range of tasks regularly carried out by care workers and how complex and challenging their work can be. The jobs of many care workers are increasingly medicalised and the skill and level of responsibility they hold should be recognised through better pay and conditions. Conference believes that if there was a greater understanding of the realities of care work across the UK then there would be more support for UNISON’s core social care campaign aims and objectives.
Conference applauds the actions of the Welsh government in trying to improve pay rates for care workers and in seeking to establish a national forum for employers and trade unions, as happens in the NHS. Such an initiative would be welcome throughout the rest of the UK as a way of improving terms and conditions for care workers. Conference believes this sort of approach could serve as an interim measure ahead of establishing a publicly owned and provided national care service.
Conference notes that the future of social care could look very different in Scotland depending on what comes out of the National Care Service for Scotland. Conference is extremely concerned about the Scottish government’s determination to centralise a variety of functions and believes that UNISON should respond robustly to any drive to remove social care services and jobs from the control of local authorities.
Conference recognises this is a pivotal time for the future of social care across the UK in terms of how it is funded and delivered. It urges the Local Government Service Group Executive to continue to make improving the terms and conditions of care workers a key priority in the years ahead.
Conference therefore calls on the Service Group Executive to:
1)Continue to lead the positive Future Social Care Coalition and build support for a national care service across the UK and to bring all care services back in-house;
2)Continue to ensure that social care remains a priority campaign issue within the Service Group and as part of the union’s new joined up approach to the issue;
3)Campaign for more funding to be given to councils across the UK in order to help fund the delivery of better quality care services and better terms and conditions for care workers;
4)Promote examples of UNISON branches and regions who have managed to return care services back in-house and put pressure on all other councils to do the same;
5)Raise awareness about how demanding and complex the roles of care workers are, alongside efforts to ensure they are paid accordingly for their work; mount a campaign to show the work done by home carers during the pandemic;
6)Work with other Service Groups, branches, regions and UNISON’s Strategic Organising Unit to develop a national organising strategy which builds our industrial strength in the sector and builds on our rising membership, solidifying our position as THE union for social care;
7)Continue to seek to influence the Westminster government to establish a national forum between employers and trade unions, to address issues in the sector, similar to that in operation in the NHS;
8)Campaign for a minimum wage of £15 an hour for care workers.