IMPOSING a ban on care home employees working in more than one place without guaranteeing their wages would plunge thousands of low-income families into poverty, public service union Unison warns today.

If the government goes ahead with the legislation, the rule could also cause “disastrous” staff shortages in care homes and put elderly and vulnerable residents at risk, Unison said. 

The union agreed that minimising work in multiple locations was “sensible” to control the spread of Covid-19 infections, but it added that this “cannot be achieved by government diktat.”

Unison pointed out that many carers earn little more than the minimum wage and are employed on zero-hours contracts, which “leaves them no choice” but to have multiple care jobs.

The union was responding to a government consultation on the proposed ban, which it said “ignores the need to maintain wage levels.”

Assistant general secretary Christina McAnea argued: “The way to limit employees working in multiple locations is for employers to guarantee hours so staff no longer need to work in other care homes.  

 “Alternatively, care homes can pay staff for the hours previously worked elsewhere. The government must ensure funds are available to achieve this.”