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Home care staff working for private contractors are paid up to £2 per hour less than their council equivalents, according to research conducted in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.

The study, funded by public sector union Unison, also finds that home carers working for private contractors have zero-hour contracts with no guaranteed hours, and no payment for training or travel between clients.

Released last week as part of the Living Wage campaign, it shows that approximately 60 per cent of home care services in London are provided by outside contractors.

- Mapping Low Pay in East London at www.geog.qmul.ac.uk/staff/wills.html