2 September (Part 3) - Caring Charters
The reports of how Bexley council takes pride in
paying its care workers less than surrounding boroughs provoked quite a lot
of correspondence and maybe that is not surprising given that Bexley has one of
the
highest proportion of unpaid carers in London. Paying care workers less than
the minimum wage, taking the lack of paid travelling time or payment for expenses
into account, is unethical, illegal and calculated to drive down standards - but
it’s what Bexley does through its approved contractors. I recently learned that
charities providing the same service as a relief to the unpaid carers pay their
staff nearly twice as much as Bexley does.
The
Director of Social Care in Bexley is Mark Charters and he has
written an article about the work he does in the borough. Maybe those with
an interest in the subject would like to read it. Ignore the opening comment “We
must be more open with local residents”, it’s not all bad however the emphasis
remains on “cutting costs”.
Note: Unfortunately the article is no longer available.