Leading not-for-profit care provider The Orders of St John Care Trust (OSJCT) will continue to pay the current real Living Wage from 1 April 2023.
The decision represents a £6m annual incremental investment in OSJCT’s employees, all of whom will be paid at an hourly rate of £10.90 or above. Care colleagues will be paid at least £11.07 per hour.
In addition, OSJCT will continue to support its employees with various initiatives, including free access to counselling, financial and legal information via its Employee Assistance Programme and The Care Workers’ Charity, health and wellbeing support, and the Blue Light Card high street discount scheme.
More broadly, OSJCT continues to advocate for long-term reform of the social care sector, including raising the issue of fair pay directly with the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) and other key stakeholders.
OSJCT CEO Dan Hayes said: “We strive to provide the highest standard of care to each of our residents and tenants, and colleagues in our care homes are critical in delivering that service. This pay rise reflects the incredibly important work that they do.
“We know that our colleagues are also facing a tough time with the rising cost of living. We are doing everything we can to support them, and I’m pleased that we can continue to prioritise this significant investment in our people.
“We also know that it’s a tough job market, and we hope this boost in pay shows prospective employees just how much we value our workforce, and that social care can be a rewarding career choice.”
