Petition · past parliament
Recognise unpaid carers as worker
Rejected
11 signatures
What the petition asks
Unpaid carers need to be recognised as workers. They should be paid & given employment rights as other workers are. Being an unpaid carer is a job with many having to sacrifice their career to care for a relative. They are skilled workers, they should be recognised as such rather than exploited.
Unpaid carers work an incredible number of hours, often more than 100 hours a week, with no minimum wage & no employment rights.
It’s not acceptable that unpaid carers can work these hours with no breaks, no sick leave, no annual leave, with no thought as to their safety, their health, & the safety of the person they are caring for. The Government needs to recognise carers as workers giving them rest periods & leave as other workers are entitled to and pay them accordingly for the work they do
It’s not acceptable that unpaid carers can work these hours with no breaks, no sick leave, no annual leave, with no thought as to their safety, their health, & the safety of the person they are caring for. The Government needs to recognise carers as workers giving them rest periods & leave as other workers are entitled to and pay them accordingly for the work they do
Why it was rejected
It was not clear what the petition asked the UK Government or Parliament to do.
Workers are people who have a contract or other arrangement to do work or services personally for a reward.
Unpaid carers are people who voluntarily provide care to someone else. Depending on their circumstances they may be entitled to Carer's Allowance.
We can accept petitions calling for changes to Carer's Allowance, for example requests for increased payments, but it would need to be clear what changes you wanted to be made to this benefit.
Unpaid carers are people who voluntarily provide care to someone else. Depending on their circumstances they may be entitled to Carer's Allowance.
We can accept petitions calling for changes to Carer's Allowance, for example requests for increased payments, but it would need to be clear what changes you wanted to be made to this benefit.
Timeline
| 11 Mar 2023 | Petition opened for signatures |
| 16 Mar 2023 | Rejected by the Petitions Committee |
Key facts
Signatures
11
Status
Rejected
Rejected
16 Mar 2023
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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 15 Jul 2026.