As per the latest announcement by the UK government, care home staff needs to be vaccinated in order to continue their job and protect the residents of the care homes. While this is scientifically the most practical approach towards safeguarding care homes from Covid infections, it is also imperative to note that taking the vaccine is a choice, not a mandate.
This decision has triggered an exodus of care home staff for many employers in the UK, leading to job losses, and put care homeowners in a sensitive position. According to the BBC, London has the maximum number of unvaccinated care home staff. The publication has several first-person accounts of care home workers who have been bullied into having a jab.
Harbhajan Surdhar, a Care Homeowner in the UK spoke to Asian Voice in an insightful Q&A about the consequences of the vaccine rule for care home workers.
Q - How does the recent vaccine law for care home workers fundamentally impact your staff and hiring process?
The recent discussion around making vaccine law mandatory for care staff will have serious implications on current serving staff as well as new staff hired. What is already a very challenging situation in terms of recruitment will worsen as we as the employer, will have to seek legal advice both in terms of employment law and employment contracts.
Q - In case you're put in a situation where any of your workers do not wish to take the vaccine, what would you do?
In all of our care homes, our staff have been fully vaccinated, however, if we were in a position where a staff member did not wish to have the vaccine, we will have to respect their rights unless otherwise governed by law. We are very proud of the fact that we have not had a single covid case in any of our care homes. This is a testament to our managers and staff who have vigorously implemented infection control policies, procedures and testing.
Q - What is the overall status of staff at your care home right now? Has it in any way been impacted by Brexit and the shortage of staff in the UK in general?
Staff shortages are an ongoing recruitment challenge in the care sector and the situation will, unfortunately, worsen due to Brexit. This is in part due to the perception of care as a career choice, coupled with complex immigration policies and the high costs involved with recruiting staff from overseas. I have been very fortunate to have had an excellent staff retention rate throughout this period of uncertainty brought about by the pandemic and Brexit. I do not use agency staff and have embedded staff retention policies in my business that has future-proofed against staff shortages.
Q - What are the legal implications of laying off or dealing with staff who may not wish to take the vaccine? Could you elaborate on how it'd affect both parties?
Any changes in the law will require both parties to seek legal advice on these matters. Clearly, for an employer, this would incur greater costs, adapting to new policies and procedures, and losing good staff in what is already an undersubscribed profession. From the perspective of an employee, this would result in the loss of a job and possibly even a career. I would like to thank Elizabeth Johnson, Legal Director at Axiom DWFM, for her invaluable advice and expertise over the years which has greatly influenced our working practices.
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NHS statistics from 777 care homes in London that have reported data shows:
The total number of residents in London's care homes is 22,825, the lowest of any region in England,
They have 35,181 staff members
21,291 (93%) of residents and 26,904 (77%) staff members have had at least a first dose of the vaccine by 13 June
343 care homes have reported 80% of staff and 90% of residents have had 1st dose (44%), while 179 care homes have had the second dose (23%)
54% of homes have 80% of staff that have had the first dose
