Disabled people are more at risk of having to make the difficult decision between heating and eating
Before the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic disabled workers faced huge barriers getting into and staying in work (writes TUC General Secretary PAUL NOWAK).
The pandemic, and the huge changes it has caused to our everyday lives, has exacerbated the barriers disabled people face.
Not only have disabled people been disproportionately affected in terms of loss of life, with six in 10 Covid-19 related deaths being disabled people, but pre-existing workplace barriers have been accentuated by the pandemic.
And now, new data published by the TUC for our disabled workers conference shows disabled workers are much more likely to earn less than non-disabled workers.
That’s not right.
Having an impairment should never mean you get paid less or that you’re on worse terms and conditions. However, for too many disabled workers in this country, it is an all too true reality.
With spiralling inflation and eye watering bills, workers are having their income stretched in every direction. But for disabled people, the situation is even more challenging.
Let’s not forget – disabled workers face even higher living costs than non-disabled workers. So as the cost-of-living crisis continues to play havoc with everyone’s lives, we know that these workers are feeling the pinch even more.
But the challenges don’t end there.
Disabled workers also encounter more barriers in the workplace than non-disabled colleagues – with many worried that if they ask their employer for the reasonable adjustments they need to do their job, they’ll be refused outright.
New TUC analysis reveals disabled workers are much more likely to be paid less than their non-disabled colleagues – with those in the North of England and Wales even more likely to be paid less.
And we know that disabled people are more at risk of having to make the difficult decision between heating and eating.
With this cost-of-living crisis not looking like it’s going to end any time soon, things are only going to get worse. We need action now.
With the government too focused on its own political survival, ministers have done nothing to put the mind of disabled workers at ease.
Our call is clear: It’s time to end the pay disparity that penalises disabled workers and it’s time disabled workers get the support they need in the workplace.
At the TUC’s disabled workers conference, we heard from delegates about how the cost-of-living crisis is hitting disabled workers across the country. And we heard how we can build workplaces that work for everyone.
That means stamping out insecure work by banning zero-hour contracts, increasing the minimum wage and outlawing fire and rehire.
That means giving disabled workers fair access to request reasonable adjustments, and fining those employers who discriminate against workers because of any impairment.
And that means forcing employers to come with an action plan to report their disability pay and employment gaps.
This is a plan which will deliver and transform the lives of so many disabled workers across the country.
NEW REPORT: TUC report shows how austerity led to unsafe staffing in public services, a broken safety net, and decimated workplace safety enforcement when the pandemic began
“Austerity cost the nation dearly. The consequences were painful and tragic. The inquiry is our chance to learn from this” says the TUC
Austerity left the UK “hugely unprepared” for the Covid pandemic, according to a new report published by the TUC yesterday.
The report looks at four pillars of the country’s pandemic preparedness:
Safe staffing levels in public services
Public service capacity and resources
A strong safety net through the social security system
Robust health and safety protections at work
It finds that in each of these key areas, funding cuts reduced the country’s capacity to respond to the pandemic.
The report was published as the TUC held a joint press conference with the Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice about the lessons that must be learned through the inquiry, to save lives in the future.
Safe staffing levels in health and social care
The report details how safe staffing levels in health and social care were undermined by multiple years of pay caps and pay freezes, which impeded recruitment and increased staff turnover. This left both health and social care dangerously understaffed when the pandemic began:
Between 2010 and 2020, the number of nurses per capita in the UK grew by less than one per cent – despite demand for care rising by one-third. This is in stark contrast to the OECD average of nurses per capita rising by 10 per cent.
In 2019 the average NHS worker was earning £3,000 less in real terms than in 2010, with significant impacts on both recruitment and retention.
In social care, the turnover rate for staff in England increased from 22 per cent in 2012/13 to 31.8 per cent in 2019/20.
When the pandemic hit, a quarter (24%) of social care workers in England were employed on zero-hours contracts, with the turnover rate higher among these workers.
Public services capacity and resources
Public services capacity was damaged by steep cuts to almost every part of the public sector.
In 2020 when the pandemic hit, spending per capita was still lower than in 2010 in social care, transport, housing, childcare, schools, higher education, police, fire services, and environmental protection.
This limited the ability of public services to contribute effectively to civil contingencies, and to continue essential activities effectively such children’s education.
Between 2010 and 2020, school funding per pupil was cut by 8.3% in England, 6.4% in Wales, 2.4% in Scotland and 10.5% in Northern Ireland.
Local authority core spending power was cut by a third between 2010 and 2020. Over the same period, demographic changes increased pressures – for instance, leading to higher referrals and more complex cases in both adult and children’s social care. And new statutory duties in public health, social care and homelessness have stretched budgets further.
In 2019, capital investment in the UK health sector was 10% below 2010 levels. This forced NHS providers to close hospitals and delay equipment upgrades.
A strong safety net through the social security system
The social security safety net was damaged by direct cuts through benefit freezes, and by reforms that reduced entitlement to help and narrowed eligibility to fewer people.
Most of these benefits cuts were made in the period 2010 to 2016 when David Cameron was Prime Minister and George Osborne was Chancellor – both of whom are set to give evidence at the Covid inquiry.
The benefit cuts increased poverty levels. Living in poverty was associated with greater risks of exposure to Covid-19, and greater levels of vulnerability to more serious health consequences from being ill with Covid.
Since 2010, £14 billion has been cut from support to households through social security.
A family not in work has lost on average £1,160 a year in social security support since 2010, and a family in work has lost on average £460.
Disabled people have lost on average £1,200 of annual support, comparing 2021 with 2010.
Robust health and safety protections at work
The pandemic had a particular impact on workplaces – especially for key workers and those who could not work from home. But the enforcement of rules to keep workers safe at work was compromised by cuts that decimated public health and workplace safety regulators, and by confusion about who had responsibility to enforce the rules.
During the pandemic, when workplace risks multiplied, workplace inspections and enforcement notices fell to an all-time low, despite vast numbers of workplace-linked transmission caused by poor health and safety practice.
Funding for the Health and Safety Executive (HSE – the body responsible for workplace safety) in 2021/22 was 43% lower than in 2009/10 in real terms.
Staff numbers at the HSE have been cut by 35% since 2010.
The number of workplaces investigated by a safety inspector fell by 70% from 2010 to 2020.
TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said:“To learn lessons and save future lives, we must take an unflinching look at the choices made by our leaders in the years before the pandemic.
“In the NHS and social care, funding cuts put staff levels in the danger zone. Cuts to social security pushed many more people below the poverty line, leaving them more vulnerable to infection. And cuts to health and safety left workers exposed to rogue employers who cut corners and put their lives at risk.
“Austerity cost the nation dearly. It left us hugely unprepared for the pandemic. And it left far too many workers unprotected. The consequences were painful and tragic.
“The inquiry is our chance to learn the lessons – and to understand why we have to rebuild our public services so that they are strong enough to protect us in a future crisis.”
Nurses who worked in critical care during the COVID pandemic are at an increased risk of mental health problems according to a study, which has found three quarters showed signs of psychological distress, while a third reported clinically significant symptoms of post-traumatic stress.
They surveyed more than 400 critical care nurses (CCNs), as well as 200 who were redeployed to critical care (RDNs), across units in Scotland, England and Wales. 45 were also interviewed in depth, with one describing working shifts amid the crisis as being ‘like fighting a fire with a water pistol’.
The survey found growing levels of burnout among staff, compared to a similar study carried out before the pandemic by members of the team (Dr Louise McCallum), with a quarter of nurses planning to leave their role in the next year. Respondents expressed concerns about the quality of patient care and reduced attention to staff wellbeing and development during the pandemic.
Chief Investigator Professor Diane Dixon of Edinburgh Napier University’s School of Applied Sciences said: “The challenges thrown at nurses during the COVID-19 crisis have clearly left lasting concerns not just for their own wellbeing, but for the health service itself.
“They are likely to endure well beyond the end of the pandemic.”
Chief Investigator Dr Janice Rattray of the University of Dundee’s School of Health Sciences said: “These results are concerning as burnout is contagious, and symptoms of post-traumatic stress do not always resolve on their own. The NHS needs to prioritise the well-being of these nurses.
“Failure to address staff wellbeing is likely to have negative consequences for staff recruitment and retention, patient safety and quality of care.”
CANDID was carried out between January 2021 and June 2022, comparing its survey results directly with those from previous research in 2018. The percentage of nurses self-reporting levels of psychological distress and burnout through emotional exhaustion that would likely have a psychological diagnosis if interviewed clinically more than doubled in that time.
The study, which will now go through a peer-reviewing process, also measured the impact on organisational outcomes. Each of these worsened. Nurses reported reduced job satisfaction, less certainty about their future working for the NHS and were more likely to be planning to leave their role. Nurses also reported that both quality of care and patient safety had declined.
Although it was not recorded in the 2018 survey, a third of the nurses who responded reported clinically concerning symptoms of posttraumatic stress. During interviews, some spoke about the stress of dealing with relatives unable to see their loved ones in hospitals, as well as a feeling of isolation among RDNs separated from their usual teams.
The study recommends the NHS prioritises the welfare of CCNs and RDNs, implements workplace planning, supports them to recover from the pandemic, and creates an environment that will allow them to thrive in future.
LGBT+ people across Scotland are continuing to face health inequalities across every measure of wellbeing, according to a major new report by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, NHS Lothian and Public Health Scotland.
The findings of the Health Needs Assessment, commissioned by the Boards, found that the COVID pandemic has exacerbated issues, with significant numbers experiencing loneliness and isolation, while almost a half of LGBT+ people in the survey said they had experienced discrimination in the previous year – with trans and non-binary communities experiencing higher levels of abuse.
The assessment also revealed significantly high levels of mental ill-health, with more than half of all respondents reporting issues such as depression, anxiety and stress, with the highest rates experienced by trans and non-binary individuals.
The comprehensive assessment was undertaken to better address gaps in knowledge about the health and wellbeing of LGBT+ patient groups, to better inform approaches to public health for LGBT+ people, across seven groups: lesbian and gay women, gay men, bisexual women, bisexual men, trans women, trans men (trans masculine) and non-binary people across the Greater Glasgow & Clyde and Lothian areas.
Nicky Coia, Health Improvement Manager at NHSGGC said: “This report should serve as a wake-up call for everyone involved in the health and wellbeing of LGBT+ communities.
“Too many continue to suffer from discrimination and abuse, are experiencing social isolation and loneliness and suffering the impacts of poor mental health. This, combined with the poor socio-economic situations many find themselves in, contributes to a substantial health inequalities on every measure of wellbeing.
“While there are positives to be taken in terms of how LGBT+ experience healthcare, particularly from the GPs, there is still work to be done to improve access to, and experience of, person-centred healthcare, that treats the individual, no matter their gender identity or sexual orientation.”
Dona Milne, Director of Public Health and Health Policy at NHS Lothian, said: “We interviewed more than 200 people and over 2,500 people took part in the online survey as part of this research. Their experience is in stark contrast to the progress that many of us may feel has been made in achieving equality in Scotland.
“I want to thank everyone who took part and express our shared desire to highlight this as a key public health issue and deliver real improvements in health and wellbeing for LGBT+ communities.”
Some of the key findings include:
· Nearly three in four (73%) survey respondents said they ever felt isolated from family and friends and nearly two in five (38%) had felt lonely all of the time or often in the previous two weeks. Trans and non-binary people showed the highest levels of isolation and loneliness.
· The survey showed that overall more than half (54%) of respondents said they had mental health problems e.g. depression/anxiety/stress, but this was higher for trans masculine (75%), non-binary people (72%) and bisexual women (61%). Only one in four (25%) survey respondents rated their general mental and emotional wellbeing positively – but this was lowest for non-binary (9%) and trans masculine (12%).
· Of those who answered the question in the survey, nearly one in three (31%) said that they had ever made an attempt to end their life. Although the prevalence of suicide attempts was high across all LGBT+ groups, it was highest among trans masculine and non-binary people, with nearly half of respondents in these groups saying they had made a suicide attempt.
· Overall, nearly half (44%) of LGBT+ people in the survey said they had been discriminated against in the last year, but this was highest for non-binary (65%), trans masculine (62%) and trans women (55%).
· The survey findings show that 37% of LGBT+ respondents had ever experienced an abusive relationship; identity groups with the highest proportion reporting abusive relationships were trans masculine (48%), non-binary (45%), bisexual women (43%) and trans women (38%).
· only 59% overall rated their general health positively. Gay men and gay/lesbian women were the most likely to rate their health positively, while trans masculine and non-binary people were the least likely. A third (33%) of LGBT+ people had a long-term condition or illness that substantially interferes with their day to day activities.
· Most (88%) survey respondent had financial worries at least some of the time. One in six (18%) had experienced food insecurity in the previous 12 months. One in eight (13%) had ever been homeless.
The report’s authors have made 41 recommendations, including an immediate request that all Scottish local authorities should provide or fund at least some, community-led groups or activities for LGBT+ people, with provision for cultural, sport and physical activity and social interest groups, as well as targeting specific identity groups.
Other recommendations call for improvements in LGBT+ education in schools, improved LGBT+ training and awareness for health and other staff, improvements in mental health and gender identity clinics and more visibility of LGBT+ inclusive services.
Professor Nicola Steedman, Deputy Chief Medical Officer at the Scottish Government, said: “The assessment lays bare the fact that too many LGBT+ people are subject to significant inequalities which impact every aspect of their lives. I’m grateful to everyone who took part in the research and NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and NHS Lothian for carrying out this important work.
“The Scottish Government is committed to reducing inequality – in all its forms – and we welcome the report. We will continue to work with, and across our partners, to improve the health and wellbeing of our LGBT+ communities.”
Mark Kelvin, Chief Executive of LGBT Health and Wellbeing, said: “This report highlights what many of our community members experience in their daily lives.
“Whilst many people believe that LGBTQ+ people have achieved equality, this report reminds us that there is still a lot of work to do. Scotland is celebrated as being a welcoming and inclusive country and whilst that is true, almost half of LGBTQ+ respondents experienced discrimination in the past year.
“The report also highlights the health inequalities that still exist for many of us and provides very useful and realistic recommendations that will help LGBTQ+ people to live well.
Speaking specifically on how COVID-19 has impacted the LGBTQ+ community, Mark pointed out the dependency on LGBT nightlife for socialisation. He added: “Whilst the closure of pubs and clubs can be seen by many as an inconvenience, for LGBTQ+ people queer-friendly spaces provide an important place of safety and belonging.
“This meant that during the months of closures, people were shut-off from contact with others like them. I’m hopeful that this report can restart conversations with local authorities and other interested parties to open LGBTQ+ Community Centres, where people of all ages can access a place of safety, information, support, and importantly connection.”
Mhairi Crawford, from LGBT Youth Scotland, said: “LGBT Youth Scotland notes the publication of the health needs assessment of LGBT research findings report. We know from our own recently published research that health care remains a significant issue for LGBTI young people in Scotland.
“In particular, we welcome the recommendations for healthcare providers and other public bodies to undergo training, which is a key part of our LGBT Charter, in which we also support organisations to undertake reviews of policies and practice to ensure that they are as welcoming as possible for the LGBTI community, whether they are staff, clients, pupils or wider stakeholders.
“We know that alcohol free spaces are highly valued by young people we work with in our youth spaces – so we welcome the recommendation for more LGBT spaces that don’t have alcohol.
“Finally, we also welcome the recommendation that schools should undertake the LGBT Charter as we know this can have a massive impact on daily lives of LGBTI young people.”
The twin stresses of the COVID-19 pandemic and the significant turbulence in the UK energy market must be tackled to address fuel poverty according to a letter issued yesterday by the Scottish Parliament’s Social Justice and Social Security Committee.
The Committee has been examining the Scottish Government’s Tackling Fuel Poverty Strategy to ensure it meets the needs of low-income households.
The impact of ongoing high inflation was a key concern highlighted in the Committee’s letter. A significant cost of living increase, caused by high inflation, is likely to push more people into, or further into, fuel poverty. The Committee has now called on the Government to define its plans in the strategy beyond this winter to reassure people that support will be available.
The Government’s proposals outline that some households are more likely to experience fuel poverty. While the Committee was happy to see this acknowledged, they want to see what more could be done to help disabled children or adults.
The Committee also raised concerns that the strategy did not fully plan to tackle the depth of fuel poverty in rural, remote and island areas. Some of these areas have recently faced significant challenges in accessing energy caused by winter storms. The Committee called for more detail on how the Government will engage with people living in these communities, who face a disproportionate risk of extreme fuel poverty.
Neil Gray MSP, Convener of the Social Justice and Social Security Committee, said:“The significant recent disruption to energy supplies has brought the issue of equality in access to energy into sharp focus.
“We are pleased that the Scottish Government has made a commitment to address fuel poverty with this strategy. However, we believe the proposals should go further to protect the most vulnerable in our society.
“Sadly, given current indications that high inflation looks set to last well into the Spring, we are extremely worried that more people may be dragged into fuel poverty through no fault of their own. This makes it more important that the Government’s strategy details long term commitments.
“Thank you to everyone who shared their lived experience of fuel poverty with our Committee. The compelling and often upsetting evidence we heard has reinforced our belief that people’s experiences should be reflected in the strategy’s design and implementation.”
The full text of the Committee’s letter can be read here:
Thanks to funding from the City of Edinburgh Council, Edinburgh Leisure were able to bring back a summer of fun safely to their venues across this city and supported 126 children and families living on low incomes to get active and enjoy their summer.
The Scottish Government released funding to local authorities across Scotland to help address the negative impact that the Covid-19 pandemic has had on the health and wellbeing of children and young people in Scotland.
The priority for this funding was to provide opportunities that allowed children and young people to socialise and reconnect with peers, get active and most importantly have fun, during the summer.
Edinburgh Leisure offered parents or guardians, living on a low income and wanted their child to have the opportunity to take part in fun, engaging and exciting sports this summer to apply for funded places.
Spaces were available on Edinburgh Leisure’s swimming, gymnastics, dance, and tennis programmes, with no cost to the family applying. The coaching programmes took place in a variety of venues across the city, at various dates, with some one-day sessions and some full-week activity programmes.
Edinburgh Leisure also offered 320 spaces for families to attend their AquaDash Extreme and Clip n Climb sessions.
Families who were eligible for the programme included children who receive school uniform and meal grants, care experienced children, young carers, children whose families are in receipt of Universal Credit and children supported by a child’s plan.
Tommy George, Community Development Manager at Edinburgh Leisure, said: “For many families, finances are really tight and getting involved in activities during the holidays can be prohibitive due to cost.
“Thanks to funding from the City of Edinburgh Council, however, we were able to support families living on low incomes to ‘Get Into Summer’ by getting active, learn key skills, build confidence and esteem, as well as having fun, in a safe environment.”
Edinburgh Leisure also provided a free football programme for young people from S1 to S6 to take part in and a weekly free ‘Sport on the Beach’ session at Portobello for primary school-aged children.
