Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 1:38 pm on 28 September 2021.
As far as Plaid Cymru is concerned, social care is highly skilled work, and should be treated as such in terms of pay and conditions. It is unfair and unjust that social care workers are not given the respect that they deserve. You may remember, last week, I raised the changes to day-care provision for disabled adults in Caerphilly county borough, from the perspective of the families they affect. We also need to remember that there is a dedicated team of workers that has also been affected by the Labour council's plans. As one union official said in a meeting yesterday, 'These front-line workers went above and beyond the call of duty to work throughout the COVID pandemic, and are now being thanked with redeployment and the threat of being made redundant if they don't accept lesser terms and conditions'. First Minister, how can we expect people to be attracted to the social care sector, and, equally as importantly, how are people with experience expected to remain in the sector, where they are being treated so poorly?