25% of Social Care Professionals Moved Jobs Last Year Due to Unfulfilling Work

New research released by Hays has found that close to half (46%) of social care professionals moved jobs in the last 12 months driven by unfulfillment in their roles ahead of salary dissatisfaction

The research which received over 900 responses from social care professionals and employers forms part of the Hays 2023 Social Care Salary & Recruiting trends guide

A quarter (25%) of social care workers said they left a role last year due to unfulfillment, followed by 18% who said the move was due to salary dissatisfaction decreasing from 25% in 2022 This was followed by a lack of career development opportunities (21%) or career progression (19%) Ultimately job fulfilment is critical to retaining talent in the sector Brendan Ryan Director at Hays specialising in Social Care comments: “Hiring plans are set to be busy this year within the social care sector but employers are up against tough competition for talent Organisations must therefore promote compelling reasons why someone should join their organisation

According to the survey the most important benefits for social care workers are additional days off for wellbeing (49%) over 28 days of paid annual leave (49%) and training / professional certification support (43%)

Whilst hybrid working is not always possible in more hands-on roles it is a factor which continues to attract and retain talent Over half (53%) of social care professionals could be tempted to change jobs if they could decide how often they were in the workplace, illustrating the appeal of flexible hybrid work

51% of professionals across social care gave their work-life balance a positive rating which shows little change to last year (49%)

Professionals across social care value a strong EVP (Employee Value Proposition) when searching for a prospective employer including whether an organisation has a strong sense of purpose (93%), a commitment to sustainability (90%) and a diverse and inclusive culture (81%)

In terms of the 12 months ahead 61% of professionals are looking to change jobs motivated by a better salary and benefits package (23%) concerns about job security (16%) or a lack of future opportunities in their organisation (13%) For those who don t have their heart set on moving jobs in the upcoming months the top factor that could tempt