Proper pay for carers?

[cressida]

Giving up paid employment to care for an elderly or disabled person is a step not to be taken lightly. Any would-be carers should think about it very, very carefully. There are all kinds of pitfalls. It is difficult to see any advantages.

 

The carer's allowance is paltry and is taxable. National Insurance is paid for carers but they lose workplace pension along with salary. As the elderly or disabled person's care needs increase, the carer can become increasingly exhausted. Ill health in carers has been researched and it is well known that they suffer from a high risk of ill health, mental and physical. For some carers, the stress can be intolerable. When the caree goes into care or dies, after a very short time the carer will find themselves without any income. If they have been out of the workplace for a long while, it might be very difficult to find another job, more so for the men and women who are older.

 

Some people have no choice but to become carers. Others drift into the role inadvertently, without fully understanding what they are letting themselves in for. If anyone is thinking about becoming a carer, take advice and have a look at some of the threads on the Carers UK Forum. Being a carer is not a job that has many benefits (if any). It can be like going to work and never being allowed to go home and rest. This is why paying carers more money is not always the answer. Better, and more support for carers is needed but with cut backs in spending, that is not always available.

 

Yes, an excellent post

[barleycorn]

Clearly £60/wk carers allowance is far too low, but how much should be paid? Below are some rough numbers based on national minimum wage come April 2018 and assuming 16 hrs full time care per day and 8 hrs on call care (i.e. when sleeping) for a live in carer.

 

Costs for caring: /week, /year

NMW (25 +) : £1,096.20, £57,159.00

NMW (21-24): £1,033.20, £53,874.00

NMW (18-20): £826.00, £43,070.00

NMW (16-17): £588.00, £30,660.00

 

Carers allowance: £60.00, £3,210.00

Hospital bed: £2,100.00, £109,500.00

Nursing home: £600.00, £31,285.71

 

Depending on whose house the caree/carer are living in (and whether it is owned or rented) there will also be various benefits paid out such as housing benefit, council tax benefit, disability living allowance, heating allowance which would need to be taken into account I think.

 

That said I think looking at the base figures there is massive room for improvement while still saving money over nursing homes.