It's A Job, But A Pretty Crap One.

[poliphilo]

One of our more or less regular carers- middle-aged, Bulgarian- has quit the agency to work for Tesco.  And why not? The care job is a zero hours contract, lots of driving, no allowance for wear and tear on the worker's car. Our even more regular carer- also Bulgarian and middle-aged- has a client who's going away for a while- which means she loses the hours and the money- with no way of getting redress...

Comments

[sorenr.livejournal.com]

You've got to admire these people for pushing through, regardless of the horrid terms they're offered... And quite frankly I see why a job at Tesco with fixed hours would be more appealing!

It must be so difficult to keep a budget when you have no fixed income - but rent and food still cost the same every month.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

It's a tough job with a barely adequate reward- but it's better than anything on offer in Bulgaria- which is why these women are over here...

[sorenr.livejournal.com]

I fully understand why some people choose to move to a different country for a better salary - after all, I was married to a guy who did that twice, first to Aberdeen, then to Houston! We were no different from a Bulgarian carer when you think about it. Just richer. (Also, we were quite comfortable in Denmark, probably unlike the Bulgarian carers.)

My younger brother has a construction company that mainly employs Polish workers. At first he did it because they were cheap labour, but when it started going well he changed to paying them union-level wages, simply because they were worth it. And they get their 5 weeks annual paid leave and time off in lieu of overtime - which is what they most want, so they can take a long weekend with their families as often as possible.

And trust me: My younger brother is business-savvy! He wouldn't do this if there wasn't money in it for him - and the best money is made with the best workers - so he pays them what it takes to keep them.

If all you offer is zero-hour contracts and minimal benefits... Well, people are going to leave when they get the chance!

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

This country relies on immigrants to do a whole range of jobs. It's not at all clear what's going to happen to these workers when Brexit kicks in.

[sorenr.livejournal.com]

I know only too well, having more than a few friends who work in the UK and are uncertain about the future. (And of course I used to be one of those EU people in the UK 2000-2003, so that makes it a bit personal for me.)