As care workers employed by one of Scotland’s largest health and social care charities prepare to walk-out over pay, Enable says national action is needed to deliver improved pay and conditions across social care.

The charity said it is working alongside trade union UNISON to “minimise disruption” from strike action, but that the issues face by staff go beyond what it can do as an employer.

Around 600 Enable frontline social care workers voted in favour industrial action over pay – first time in a decade social care workers in the charitable sector have voted to strike, as staff share they are “struggling to make ends meet”.

An Enable spokesperson told healthandcare.scot that any increase to pay needs to come from the Scottish government:

“Enable has campaigned for over a decade for improved terms and conditions for the social care workforce. We are disappointed by this result.

“We understand that 20% of the social care workforce experience in-work poverty, and this is unsustainable.

“We will continue to work in partnership with UNISON to minimise disruption for the people we all serve.

“Significantly enhanced pay beyond the real living wage is entirely dependent on external funding.

“We too would welcome a national agreement on improved social care pay and conditions.”

The minimum hourly wage for Scotland’s care workers is set to increase in line with the Real Living Wage from this month, from £12 to £12.60 following additional funding from the Scottish government.

A Scottish government spokesperson told healthandcare.scot that this takes its total investment in improving social care pay to £950m in 2025/26, adding:

“We value the vital role social care workers play in delivering high-quality care to people of Scotland.

“We also remain deeply concerned about the impact the increase in Employers National Insurance Contributions (ENICs) will have across the social care sector.”

The impact of Westminster’s increase to employer’s national insurance contributions on the social care sector is estimated to cost adult social care providers in the independent and charitable sector, around £84m in 2025/26, according to Scottish government estimates.

However, UNISON Scotland organiser Wendy Hudson told healthandcare.scot that the goevernment’s failure to act on previous promises for care workers has been “extremely disappointing”:

“Three years ago, the Scottish government promised to improve care workers pay and sick pay, and to introduce national pay negotiations with unions – their lack of action since has been extremely disappointing. 

“The Scottish government hold the purse strings, they set social care budgets and with it the minimum rate of pay that care workers are struggling to live on.

“Increasing workers’ pay is critical to solving the problems we have in the sector.”

Announcing the strike action, Ms Hudson said the overwhelming support for strike action reflects wider problems for care staff and Enable is “one of the better employers in the care sector”, adding:

“Without proper funding from the Scottish government, care workers will continue to be let down. Ministers must fund charitable care properly and act to resolve this issue.”

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