A national helpline assisting victims of modern slavery has reported a significant increase in calls from foreign workers who arrived in the UK to address staffing shortages in the care sector.
Many of these workers claimed to have paid substantial sums to individuals who facilitated their arrival, particularly after visa regulations were altered last year.
Unseen UK disclosed that over 700 care staff sought assistance through its helpline in 2022. The charity's latest data reveals a disturbing trend:
In 2021, the helpline handled 15 cases of modern slavery in the care sector, involving 63 potential victims.
By 2022, the number of cases escalated to 106, involving 708 potential victims.
Reports from 2023 indicate a continuing rise in cases.
Notably, nearly one in five potential victims of modern slavery identified by the charity in 2022 were associated with the care sector.
The charity's report, released on Monday, highlights the exorbitant fees some workers are required to pay for their travel to the UK and sponsorship certificates. While the sponsorship cost is relatively low, usually covered by care companies, unscrupulous employers and agents are charging workers as much as £25,000, adding interest and deducting this debt from their wages. This cycle leaves workers perpetually trapped in debt, as noted in the report.
One care worker, named Divya to protect her identity, contacted the helpline after arriving in the UK from India to work in home care. She described being housed with four other care workers, having her passport confiscated, and being coerced into signing a three-year contract with the care company. She claimed she was required to work 12-hour shifts consecutively, with little respite.
The report also features Janet, who arrived from Zimbabwe and was charged £10,000 by her employer for a sponsorship certificate. Janet sometimes worked grueling 18-hour shifts for ten consecutive days.
In February 2022, the UK government designated care work as a "shortage" occupation to address the soaring number of social care vacancies. This change aimed to tackle the 164,000 social care vacancies recorded in England for 2021/22. While these vacancies have slightly decreased, primarily due to nearly 70,000 people arriving in the UK to work in care, Unseen's chief executive, Andrew Wallis, has criticized this approach for leading to increased "labour abuse and exploitation," particularly affecting vulnerable workers.
Some overseas care workers have reached out to care providers, either via email or in-person, seeking employment because the companies that brought them to the UK are not providing sufficient work or wages for survival.
Fear of deportation is prevalent among these workers, preventing them from reporting their mistreatment. Mary Anson, a care home operator, has encountered such cases and is attempting to assume sponsorship for the affected workers to safeguard their rights.
Various stakeholders in the care sector, including the Homecare Association and the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services, have called for a co-ordinated approach to address this issue, emphasizing the importance of improving pay and working conditions as the long-term solution. The government has expressed its commitment to ensuring that overseas care workers in the UK receive at least the minimum required salary and has published a recruitment code of practice. It also reaffirmed its determination to investigate any illegal employment practices and take appropriate action against violators. Photo by SuSanA Secretariat, Wikimedia commons.