Ethnic minority care staff more likely to be on zero hour contracts and in junior roles

The leader of the Care Workers’ Charity has said poorer outcomes for ethnic minority staff working in social care, revealed by a new report, are "shocking but unfortunately not surprising".

Evidence of bullying, harassment and abuse of these workers has been revealed by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), which found ethnic minority workers in England and Wales are more likely to be employed on zero-hour contracts and be in fear of victimisation and losing their jobs.

’Deeply troubling' but 'not new’

Karolina Gerlich, chief executive of the Care Workers' Charity, said: “The findings of this report are deeply troubling, and yet the challenge is not new to the sector.

"For too long poor practices in adult social care have been allowed to continue largely unchecked, and we know that care workers lack the safety net and protections given to their counterparts in the NHS.

“We hope that independent care providers with responsibility for commissioned-out services take decisive action to address bullying, harassment and unequal treatment. Only if all parts of the system accept their role in promoting equality do we stand a chance of addressing the systemic racism and discrimination highlighted by the EHRC.”

The CWC is urging lower-paid, ethnic minority workers who need support with the cost-of-living, to contact its Grants Team through the CWC website by clicking here.

The EHRC report is based on an inquiry (launched in November 2020), which gathered evidence from 93 low-paid ethnic minority workers in health and social care sectors in England, Scotland and Wales. Evidence (collected between December 2020 and May 2021) focused on ethnic minority staff starting jobs from January 2019 to May 2021.

According to the 67-page report, poor data collection by care bosses could also be masking the full extent of discrimination against them.

The charity has backed all of the EHRC report’s recommendations including to register care workers in England “as it would not only support better workforce data, planning and professionalisation, leading to better outcomes for all care workers, but would recognise their valuable contribution to society.

“Registration would inevitably lead to improved understanding of employment rights and give care workers a voice, so that abuses of the kind detailed in this EHRC report are easier to monitor and address with commissioners and providers.”

CQC role to 'take action' against inequality

The report recommended a new role of the Care Quality Commission (CQC) which will provide oversight of local authority duties under the Care Act. Ms Gerlich said: “Treatment of care workers must be central in assurance frameworks and impact on overall ratings, or else they may effectively sanction the poor outcomes for lower-paid ethnic minority workers detailed in the report.

“The role of the regulator in tackling inequality should be clear and well-defined, and government must commit to take action against providers and local authorities who continue to perform badly.”

The chief executive believes "care workers should be given a choice of minimum hours or zero-hours contracts".

Many ethnic minority workers felt others were treating them in a negative or unfavourable way because of their race or nationality. Ethnic minority staff reported less favourable treatment by line managers including ‘excessive criticism and reproach for mistakes’.

Fewer training opportunities and a lack of representation in senior roles, particularly in social care was experienced by several lower-paid ethnic minority workers who felt managers had occasionally blocked their development deliberately. This had led to over-qualified ethnic minority staff getting stuck in junior positions for long periods.

'End bad practice'

The EHRC report stated: ‘This report has highlighted that staff were afraid to raise their concerns and unaware of their rights. A lack of representation in senior roles, poor access to training opportunities, higher numbers of zero-hours contracts and over-representation in disciplinary processes for lower-paid ethnic minority workers all point to a persistent problem. Our review of existing evidence identified numerous ethnic inequalities’.

In England, data produced for the inquiry by Skills for Care identified that ethnic minority care workers in the independent care sector were more likely to be on zero-hours contracts than white British colleagues.

This was the case particularly for home care workers in the independent sector, in which 71 per cent of ethnic minority workers were on zero-hours contracts compared with 59 per cent of white British workers in March 2020.

Baroness Kishwer Falkner, chairwoman of the EHRC said: “Our inquiry found evidence that low-paid ethnic minority staff also faced discrimination and mistreatment in their workplaces.

“What is more troubling is that a lack of good data may allow discrimination to pass unnoticed. Robust workforce data is crucial so organisations know who works for them and what their employees’ experiences are, so they can take action to end bad practice.

“We will work with government, the NHS, local authorities, regulators and care providers to ensure that the working conditions of lower-paid workers in this sector are improved."

To read the EHRC report click here