Call to fund winter bonus for care workers
Care leaders are calling on the Government to award and fund a £1,000 winter bonus for social care workers in England.
The call for the £1,000 winter bonus is being made by ADASS (the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services), in response to reports from directors across England of care services struggling or breaking down because of staff shortages.
ADASS said the winter bonus would recognise the loyalty and dedication of care workers through the COVID-19 pandemic and would help stem the loss of skilled and experienced staff to other types of work. According to reports by ADASS, there are 1.5 million jobs in social care in England, but at least 105,000 of them are vacant. ADASS claims the cost of a one-off £1,000 bonus therefore be about £1.4bn gross, but the Treasury would recoup tax and national insurance.
Care workers will be paying the new health and social care levy taking effect next April – a cost of about £140 a year – but social care will receive £5.4bn of the £36bn that the levy will raise over its first three years.