As we recover from the pandemic and support schemes such as furlough end, specific sectors are seeing significant instabilities regarding the recruitment and retention of workers and apprentices.
Members of the Health and Social Care Forum are reporting that this sector (adult in the main but also residential childcare) in particular is struggling to retain and recruit individuals as a result of several Covid-related and other factors including:
- requirement for vaccinations as a condition of employment
- terms and conditions – salaries and working practices comparing poorly with other sectors where there are employment opportunities
- exhaustion and burnout – in general, related to the last 18 months but specifically covering increased staff illness and Covid cases requiring self-isolation
- pressure to maintain 20% OTJ whilst confronting the above
GMLPF is attending the Employment and Skills Board and NW Ofsted FES meeting over the coming two weeks. It would be helpful if members operating in the H&SC sector could let us know if this is their experience and the scale of the problem. Providers delivering in other sectors are asked to let us know if this is affecting other industrial sectors. We can then feed this into any discussions about responses