ACTION on care worker pay is “clearly needed” following the removal of day-one protections against unfair dismissal in the Employment Rights Bill, experts said today.

The Resolution Foundation urged ministers to use the Bill’s provision for a Fair Pay Agreement quickly to “avert a deepening staff shortage crisis” following the manifesto breach.

A report by the think tank warned the care sector faced a recruitment and retention crisis, with almost one in four of the workforce in England leaving their job last year and the share of care workers satisfied with their pay falling from 70 per cent in 1992 to just over half last year.

Resolution Foundation economist Charlie McCurdy said: “England’s 1.5 million care workers provide a vital service to the country, but are undervalued by society.

“A new Fair Pay Agreement provides a once-in-a-generation opportunity to improve their lives and avert a deepening staff shortage crisis.

“The government should get the new body up and running quickly and keep its initial focus on the core issues of pay, progression and training. The new body will also need teeth to ensure that the higher standards are enforced.”

Unison head of social care Gavin Edwards said: “A fair-pay agreement for social care is essential to deal with the staffing crisis in the sector. 

“Vacancy rates are high and people are leaving the sector in droves for better-paid jobs elsewhere. For too long wages have failed to reflect the training, skill and dedication of care staff.”

Royal College of Nursing England executive director Patricia Marquis said: “As countless research now shows, there is a desperate need to improve pay and conditions for care workers.”