Very interesting read, thank you!
Women are just treated disgustingly everywhere aren’t they?
When you look at working class jobs that are typically for men and women, for men it’s considered building work. For women, it’s working in a care setting.
If you look at tradesmen, often your plumber is able to tile, your plasterer able to do joinery, your electrician is probably competent enough to do other building related jobs.
When women who predominantly do care work (not including nursing) they will come under the umbrella of a carer. In that role they may care for the elderly, the disabled, those at the end of their lives, those with learning disabilities and challenging behaviour, mentally unwell and physically violent people, those with medical conditions who need feeding tubes or have stoma bags they can’t attend to themselves, those with extreme physical disabilities, the list is endless. I have as have most the colleagues I’ve worked with worked across the board doing those jobs. All NMW.
The jobs are completely different and whilst you need empathy, kindness, a strong stomach and to be physically capable, one NVQ (usually health and social care) covers all of the above. You aren’t any differently paid for your skills in each situation like a man in the building industry is.
How I treated my dying patients, right until the moment they had their last breath was very different from how I had to treat my clients attending special needs discos, but both required me to be professional. Look at recently the man with 2 carers threw a baby into a crocodile enclosure I believe? Days at the zoo may look like an easy job but if you’re not 100% on the ball, incidents of the most dangerous nature may occur.
I believe support work is marginally better paid than nursing home work because more men do it.
But because it’s a predominantly female industry the skills are being paid for separately. Unlike trades who can often do a plethora of jobs just like a carer can, they can demand a higher rate and different rate for different skills. A carer who also has to employ different skills and trust me, de-escalation is a skill, bedbathing 60 disabled elderly people solo within 2 hours is a skill, just one nobody feels is worthy of real payment or respect.