Improving social care pay and conditions

20 Mar 2026 11:13 AM

Collective bargaining arrangements introduced.

A new voluntary social care bargaining body will help improve pay and conditions for more than 110,000 workers.

It will provide a forum for trade unions and care providers to negotiate better wages and wider terms and conditions for workers delivering adult social care services commissioned by local government. Arrangements will be extended to other commissioned services, such as children’s social care, in line with the Scottish Government’s commitment to fair work.

It will be established by the Scottish Government and partners, in response to requests from trades unions, and will begin negotiating in 2026, with deals implemented from 2027-28.

In addition, the Scottish Government is taking immediate action to improve conditions for workers delivering commissioned services in the private, voluntary, and independent sector, including:

• funding an increase in maternity and paternity entitlements to bring them in line with that of staff employed directly by local government; and
• funding Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) checks for workers.

Minister for Social Care and Mental Wellbeing, Tom Arthur, recently said:

“Social care workers provide essential, skilled support to the people we love, often in demanding and emotionally challenging circumstances. They deserve pay and conditions that reflect that.

"Fairer working conditions are essential to making social care the attractive and rewarding career which it should be. I thank trade unions and provider representatives for their positive engagement on this issue and look forward to close cooperation with them as we deliver sectoral bargaining.

"The steps we are taking today, with partners, deliver on our commitments and mark a major milestone in building a social care sector which we value, which we can be proud of - and that any of us may one day depend on."

Background

The voluntary bargaining framework could cover more than 110,000 members of the workforce. It will not preclude higher pay or more favourable terms and conditions being agreed by individual care providers through local collective bargaining arrangements.

The Scottish Government provides funding to enable adult and children’s social care workers delivering direct care in commissioned services, as well as those working in the private, third and independent sectors delivering funded early learning and childcare, to be paid at least the Real Living Wage.