A large health and social care charity has announced pay increases for more than 1,800 frontline workers, as minimum wage rises come into force.
Alternative Futures Group (AFG) this week announced it would increase how much it pays its health and social care workers at sites across Lancashire, Cheshire, Manchester and Liverpool from £11 to £12 per hour.
This comes as the government this week increased the minimum legal pay rate for anyone aged 21 and over, now known as the national living wage, by 10% to £11.44 per hour.
AFG said its latest pay increase amounts to a £4.6m investment and “is in addition to a £3.6m living wage increase the charity made last year in response to the spiralling cost of living”.
Accounts for the year ending 31 March 2023 show that AFG spent £49.1m last year on wages and salaries (2022: £47.4m), which represents 75% of its total income.
‘We must invest in our people’
Kirsty Murphy, chief people officer and chief operating officer for AFG, said the charity must invest in its people and ensure its offer attracts new talent and retains the best.
“The industry is woefully underfunded and is consequently in crisis whereby carers are unable to afford to put food on the table.
“Councils don’t pay enough to support payment of real living wage and providers are having to call on reserves to support the social care workforce, ensuring it still exists to provide support to the most vulnerable.
“Our commitment to our hard-working staff, recognising they are critical to the success of the organisation and the sector is unwavering.”
Pay gap in social care is a ‘real challenge’
Last month, AFG backed a call for pay parity in the social care sector after a report entitled Unfair to Care showed that workers are paid £7,617 less than their NHS England counterparts.
AFG said the pay gap “poses a real challenge to the sector”, with over 152,000 vacant roles and a 28.3% workforce turnover.
“The industry has experienced significant underfunding for several years, leading to a stark challenge across the whole of the UK,” the charity said.
“A recent staff survey highlighted the desperate need for an increase in sector pay as many were having to rely on loans, second jobs and food banks to survive.
“Recruitment to the care industry is the lifeline to many families and individuals dealing with educational and mental health and wellbeing issues. Skills for Care is estimating a further 650,000 social carers will be needed by 2035 to meet UK demand.”
Meanwhile, a recent government impact assessment estimated that the cost to charities of this week’s increases in minimum wage rates would be around £200m over the next six years.
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