Paid care worker organizing in England: priorities and progress?

Area of Science:

• Social Sciences
• Sociology
• Labor Studies

Background:

• Paid adult social care (ASC) in England is characterized by low pay, job insecurity, and exploitation, with 'decent work' being rare.
• A neoliberal agenda has led to a quasi-market model in social care, involving commissioning from independent providers, resulting in workforce fragmentation and hindering unionization.
• Limited academic research has addressed the challenges of organizing ASC workers in England.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the priorities and progress of organizing efforts within the paid adult social care sector in England.
• To understand the perspectives of both care workers and organizers regarding the challenges and opportunities for improving working conditions.

Main Methods:

• Conducted 35 semi-structured interviews with key actors, including organizers, administrators, founders, and paid direct care workers involved in ASC organizing.
• Employed thematic analysis to examine the collected data.

Main Results:

• Identified four key areas of focus for ASC workers and their representatives seeking change: pay and conditions, systemic/structural reform, increased awareness and voice, and improvements in the work environment and practices.
• Highlighted significant barriers to achieving meaningful improvements for paid care workers and to the increased prominence of care worker organizing in driving change.

Conclusions:

• The findings indicate substantial obstacles to both improving the conditions of paid care workers and enhancing the role of care worker organizing in effecting change.
• The study reflects on the relative status of care work and the circumstances of care workers within contemporary neoliberal capitalism.