social care worker wages????

Hi There

My sister is a Social Care Worker and she earns about 17 euro per hour. She gets an allowance for when she does a sleepover but she doesnt have to stay awake all night!! There is savage money in it with Double time on Sundays also. The hours are unsociable but the rewards are good

I didn't explain that very well!

I know a number of social care workers (degrees in social studies) and a number of nurses. They all work in the area they studied and didn't cross over. I'm just saying social care work is totally different from nursing. Do you know any social care workers?

Considering it is working with disabled adults it is not so different after all.

Hi Alls Smilz, she has a degree in Social Care Studies so if thats what you are looking for. She loves it, working with people with intellectual dissabilities. Shes been earning more money than me since she left college two years ago!!

rinty wrote: »

The money is really crap as a social care worker especially over the last year.No overtime,sleepovers,split shifts. a sleep over pays about 30 euros after tax. So for 3 sleepovers you get about 60 euros for 26hrs. Most people sleep for about half the night and some get no sleep.Dont even mention the weekend shifts.
To put it all in context.for the hours you are away from home,it works out about 10.50 an hour,,17 euro my arse

You can get paid 17 euro an hour,thats what im on currently. I dont have a degree in social care either, mine is in psychology. If your working with Young people with challenging behaviour the average starting wage is about €33,000. Ive seen some other social care positions for about 30,000. The hours are unsociable and the work is hard,thats why the wage is so high.

rinty wrote: »

17 euro an hour is false information. you have to include the cuts and s/o's.
basically you have to include the reality of the situation.. I left the area a while back and im delighted now. I work in O Briens now making sandwiches and I have my life back. Im not earning much less.. Have to say the 4 years in college was awaste of time.

17 euro is what i am paid and is not false information. I only work nights and they are live nights at that. i get 17 euro an hour as well as 10 % on top of that for night work. We have two very differnt social care jobs, as was pointed out earlier, it varies quite a bit.

BUT in saying that im in compete agreement with you on the having no life with social care jobs in residenitals. But luckily they are not the only social care jobs out there, there is day work too. Doing project worker stuff, just a bit harder to get into it.

iPac wrote: »

Well you see there is a scale, at the top of the scale there are those with a Masters in Social care, followed by those who have an honours bachelor degree, followed by those with an ordinary degree, followed by those with a higher certificate, followed bvy those with a level 5 qualification etc. People who have a masters and valid experience are QUALIFIED to be senior managers. Those with an honours degree and valid experience are QUALIFIED to be managers; while those with lesser qualifications are qualified to be workers unless their work experience is far greater than the experience of those with greater qualifications. This is generally how employers will determine whether a candidate is suitable for any given position.

I think SCPs with higher qualifications are foolish to apply for locum or junior positions with an organisation. They need to look out for positions where their training and skills will be utilised effectively. I have an BA hons in Social Care Practice, as part of my course I did a module on Managing Social Care Environment as do most students doing the same course. People in social care have a tendency to sell themselves short and apply for positions they are over qualified for. This isn't fair on them, the other people applying for the job and it reflects badly on Social Care Practitioners as a whole.

Leaving aside the patronising tone of your first paragraph, I'm well aware that there is a scale. Since 2007 the necessary qualification for Social Care for new recruits is the BA (Ord) in Applied Social Care. While obviously those with an Honours degree have a a higher level of training I can't agree that they should be only considering management or supervision roles. Anyone with an honours degree lucky enough to be offered an SCW position at the moment should take it because the recruitment embargo means posts are thin on the ground. Also, Social Care Leader positions look for 2 years post qual experience while management ones look for 2 yrs SCL experience. This is so candidates can demonstrate that they suitable to work in the field. I've worked with people with all levels of qualifications and none and its often not the deciding factor in their competence. Much of social care is about developing a relationship with service users and some staff don't have the people skills to do that. I've worked with people with the Ord degree who are in senior positions and do an excellent job, and with a unit manager with a masters who was incompetent. A module in management does not qualify someone to be a manager.

OP: AFAIK those working in disabilities with the Ord degree can expect a starting salary of about €32k, same as in residential childcare where I work. Never worked in the disabilities sector myself but I've heard repeatedly that its a challenging place to work. Complaints usually are about a lack of stimulation for the service users, lack of support services and facilities. Of course, like anything else there will be some centres that are excellent and some that are poor. My opinion, for what its worth, is that the stress and long hours involved in social care aren't worth the salary. Stress does depend on you handle it but most if not all SCW's suffer from it regularly. It is however very rewarding and no two days are ever the same! You'll meet some great people and a lot of the time it doesn't feel like working at all.

Hoping this thead is still open....
Due to the recession social care workers are absolutely not being looked after... in my organisation when people leave they suddenly downgrade the post.... so if someone with a third level qualification leaves the organisation their job suddenly becomes slightly changed, titled 'support worker', minimum qualification the junior cert! I mean its mad, social care organisations are looking for the cheapest... not the best...... I suppose as long as the managers own salary is not affected they chop everywhere else.

Looking for pay scale for Social Care Worker in department of justice?? Job is in Oberstown

Hi there,

I am a social care worker working in a high support residential unit. Since the change over from the HSE to the CFA the pay scales for social care workers have changed slightly. The new entry level pay scale for qualified care workers is €29,993 in the first year, increasing after every year served but capped at 5 years. However, some private residential companies do not adhere to CFA guidelines and implement their on pay structures depending on qualification and experience. Nearly all residential units provide an overnight rate which is usually around €30 for every night spent in the unit.

Hope this helps.

Is there a extra allowance for staff working in a high support unit?

Lorcan.Gleeson wrote: »

Hi there,

I am a social care worker working in a high support residential unit. Since the change over from the HSE to the CFA the pay scales for social care workers have changed slightly. The new entry level pay scale for qualified care workers is €29,993 in the first year, increasing after every year served but capped at 5 years. However, some private residential companies do not adhere to CFA guidelines and implement their on pay structures depending on qualification and experience. Nearly all residential units provide an overnight rate which is usually around €30 for every night spent in the unit.

Hope this helps.

rinty your comments are very negative, social care is a great profession, maybe it wasnt for you, but dont knock it because you didnt like it, i intend to go back to college im nearly 30 now and want to change career to do social care, there are alot of options available for social care graduates with good pay.