Supreme Court sleep-in  appeal decision is blow for ​everyone in social care, says UNISON        

  The judgment today (Friday) by the Supreme Court that social care staff are not entitled to the national minimum wage for every hour they work​, including sleep-in shifts​, is a huge blow for thousands across the country, says UNISON. The union says the ruling is a major disappointment​, but that it increases pressure on the government to bring forward ​much needed reform of the crisis-ridden sector. Today’s ruling marks the end of a long-running UNISON-backed case taken on behalf of care worker Clare Tomlinson-Blake against her now former employer Mencap. Ms Tomlinson-Blake – who provided 24-hour support to two men in their own home – argued that every hour of her night shifts should count as working time. She was required to keep ‘a listening ear out’, provide support where needed and respond to emergencies. An employment tribunal initially found in her favour, but the Court of Appeal overturned the decision in July 2018. Then in February 2019, the Supreme Court granted Ms Tomlinson-Blake permission to appeal and UNISON continued to support this case. In their ruling, the Supreme Court acknowledged that no-one would doubt the importance of care workers who look after those who cannot look after themselves, and that sleep-in staff are among the low paid. However, the justices said that workers must be paid national minimum wage when they are awake and working, but they do not need to be paid this when they’re asleep. ​A...
Source: UNISON Health care news - Category: UK Health Authors: Tags: News Press release adult social care Sleep-in payments Source Type: news