ONE of the biggest challenges facing the health and social care sector is the retention of employees – with about a third of staff leaving their jobs before they have completed training.
And whilst pay rates are a major issue, keeping hold of good staff who see the job as a rewarding vocation is about more than just money, according to a leading training provider.
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Steve Morris, group commercial director at County Durham-headquartered Learning Curve Group, which runs courses to prepare people for working in adult social care, said: “Poor employee retention is a real challenge.
“We're bringing people in, training them but the promotion route isn’t quick enough for some people.
“We see people leave before they’ve got to the next step and we have to be careful we don’t see an exaggeration of this with people who've lost jobs in other sectors trying care, just because it is a job, then leaving before they’ve given much to the job.
“More needs to be done to prepare potential care workers for the reality of the job.
“It is not all about a nice sing-song with grandma, these are tough, messy and mucky jobs and workers are going to have death to contend with.
“But these are rewarding roles, in a sector with good job opportunities – there will be more leading roles created as the need for adult social care grows – and good training opportunities, not least with the CQC (Care Quality Commission) and families looking at providers to ensure they give the best care and deliver the best, up-to-date training.
“We need to talk about the challenges and rewards of caring roles in schools, offer pre-work experience so people understand it and, before training on the job, offer pre-employment courses.”
Mr Morris said the Government-backed SWAPS (Sector Work Academy Programmes) scheme will help prepare jobseekers for the sector.
A Government spokesperson said: “It’s crucial the care sector has the staff it needs both now and in the future, which is why we are currently running a national recruitment campaign ‘Care for Others. Make a Difference’ to support providers to recruit into care roles.
“Delivering a care system that is fit for the future remains a top priority and, following new measures set out in the Health and Care Bill White Paper, we will bring forward proposals for social care reform later this year.
“That’s alongside the billions of additional funding we’ve provided to the sector, including over £1.4 billion in specific funding for adult social care, free PPE and increased staff testing to help protect staff and residents throughout the pandemic.”
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