My little Gnudren,
We live in a wonderful country where our considerate government provides care for the terminally ill or those who really need it for health reasons. But there is a real shortage of carers. So our kind government has devised a system where caring agencies can advertise in certain countries abroad for such essential workers to prop up the ailing. Old Gnu has met some of these of late. All of them have university degrees but they jump at such a generous opportunity to come and work as carers for an average wage of £10.42 an hour. They sign on for 3 years and can renew their ‘contract’ for another 3 years provided they show that they have been fully employed in the caring profession. Out of their generous salary they of course have to purchase/hire their own vehicle to travel from client to client and of course they have to find their own accommodation. Finding accommodation is simply a matter of putting in a sufficiently high bid for the renting of a flat or house to a kind landlord. Easy peasy. What could be more simple?
The carers then work from 7am to 10pm at night travelling from client to client. Of course, they are given days off compensating for the number of hours they work. But sometimes illness besets some of them, or due to unexpected events carers can do 14 days in a row, and one has even done 19 days. What an opportunity to become rich! If, as a carer, you think you are being badly treated you can, of course, leave your caring agency employer and go to another one, provided you have a good reference from the one you are leaving. Some very cynical and perverse people say that this is having these carers by the throat; because if they can’t show they have been fully employed in caring they will have to return to their own country at the end of 3 years. But let’s ignore such perverse thinking.
Oddly enough it seems that most of these carers are men, and some of them have left their wife and children back at home. A small sacrifice for such a generous wage and wonderful working life in our wonderful country. There is of course provision for them, after a certain period of time, to bring their families over here if they can find suitable accommodation which should be very easy on their generous salary.
After 6 years of employment as a carer they can have the right of residency and set about the really hard work of finding employment that utilises their useless university degrees in such subjects as computing sciences or MBAs.
How kind of our government to care for us ailing old people at such great costs to itself. Of course, old Gnu who is dyslexic and deaf may have the completely wrong end of the stick and may be imagining all this. So please forgive him.
Have a nice day!
Vetus Pater Gnu
Musicorum et Theologia
Turris LA
XX Mensis Octobris MMXXIII
I agree with you Gnu, and Hilary. We notice this as carers, and those being cared for. The government generally needs to get its head in the right place. Let’s pray for more of and moves of of God in their Christian Union prayer meetings, such as happened before, affecting Chancellor S. Javid last year (or the year before?)
Lots of love to you both and all,
Nicola
Thanks for this blog Gnu- the work of carers in this country is so underfunded and the plight of carers coming from abroad needs hi lighting. The social care system as we know is broken and the important difficult work they do is under valued. It broke my heart when the local authorities had to do away with their in-house home care teams who were properly trained with good terms and conditions all down to austerity. It shows what we value as a society and it’s not those that need care or those that provide it.