Over 300,000 people working for almost 9,000 real Living Wage Employers will receive a vital pay boost as the new Living Wage rates rise to £9.90 across the UK (40p increase) and £11.05 in London (20p increase), Living Wage Foundation reports.
The Living Wage rates are the only rates independently calculated based on what people need to live on, supporting workers and their families.
In 2021 the movement for a real Living Wage is celebrating its twentieth year, with new research from the Cardiff Business School showing Living Wage workers have benefitted from more than £1.6bn in extra wages during this period. One in 13 workers now reportedly works for an accredited Living Wage Employer.
The difference between the new Living Wage rates and the ‘National Living Wage’
Unlike the Government minimum wage - the ‘National Living Wage’ for over 23s is currently £8.91 rising to £9.50 in April - the real Living Wage is the only wage rate independently calculated based on rising living costs, including fuel, energy, rent and food. A full-time worker earning the new, real Living Wage would earn £1,930 a year more than a worker earning the current government minimum (NLW). For a worker today that’s the equivalent of 7 months of food bills and more than 5 months' rent based on average household spending in the UK. Even on next April’s higher NLW rate of £9.50, a full-time worker on the real Living Wage would earn £780 more.
In London, a full-time worker on the new real Living Wage rate would earn an additional £4,173 a year compared to a worker on the current NLW and £3,022 more than a worker on next year’s National Living Wage.
The increase in Living Wage rates this year has largely been driven by rising fuel and rent costs.
The Living Wage movement continues to grow
New Living Wage employers announced yesterday include FTSE 100 construction firms Taylor Wimpey and Persimmon Homes, Fujitsu, food delivery company Getir, and Capita. They join half of the FTSE 100 companies, household names like Aviva, Burberry, Everton FC and Lush as well as thousands of small businesses, who are choosing to pay the real Living Wage to ensure all staff earn a wage that meets the real cost of living.
More than 3,000 employers have been accredited with the Living Wage Foundation since the start of the global pandemic.
Metro Mayors in London and Greater Manchester have also today announced major new commitments to create Living Wage City Regions which could see thousands more pay rises.
Looking globally, the Living Wage campaign also today launches Living Wage for the US; the first coordinated national effort set up to ensure that workers across the United States are paid a real Living Wage.
Low pay in the UK
The announcement of the new rates comes in the wake of new research by the Living Wage Foundation demonstrating the scale of low pay during the pandemic, with 4.8 million jobs (17.1 per cent of employee jobs) still paying less than the real Living Wage. Northern Ireland had the highest proportion of jobs paying below the Living Wage (21.3 per cent or 236,000) and the South East the lowest (12.8 per cent or 533,000).
People from racialised groups were more likely to be low paid. 19.4 per cent of these workers earn below the LW compared to 16.3 per cent of white workers.
Katherine Chapman - Living Wage Foundation Director - said, “With living costs rising so rapidly, today’s new Living Wage rates will provide hundreds of thousands of workers and their families with greater security and stability.
For the past 20 years, the Living Wage movement has shaped the debate on low pay, showing what is possible when responsible employers step up and provide a wage that delivers dignity. Despite this, there are still millions trapped in working poverty, struggling to keep their heads above water - and these are people working in jobs that kept society going during the pandemic like social care workers and cleaners. We know that the Living Wage is good for businesses as well as workers, and as we rebuild our economy post-pandemic, the real Living Wage must be at its heart.”
Source: Living Wage Foundation
(Quote and links via original reporting)
Over 300,000 people working for almost 9,000 real Living Wage Employers will receive a vital pay boost as the new Living Wage rates rise to £9.90 across the UK (40p increase) and £11.05 in London (20p increase), Living Wage Foundation reports.
The Living Wage rates are the only rates independently calculated based on what people need to live on, supporting workers and their families.
In 2021 the movement for a real Living Wage is celebrating its twentieth year, with new research from the Cardiff Business School showing Living Wage workers have benefitted from more than £1.6bn in extra wages during this period. One in 13 workers now reportedly works for an accredited Living Wage Employer.
The difference between the new Living Wage rates and the ‘National Living Wage’
Unlike the Government minimum wage - the ‘National Living Wage’ for over 23s is currently £8.91 rising to £9.50 in April - the real Living Wage is the only wage rate independently calculated based on rising living costs, including fuel, energy, rent and food. A full-time worker earning the new, real Living Wage would earn £1,930 a year more than a worker earning the current government minimum (NLW). For a worker today that’s the equivalent of 7 months of food bills and more than 5 months' rent based on average household spending in the UK. Even on next April’s higher NLW rate of £9.50, a full-time worker on the real Living Wage would earn £780 more.
In London, a full-time worker on the new real Living Wage rate would earn an additional £4,173 a year compared to a worker on the current NLW and £3,022 more than a worker on next year’s National Living Wage.
The increase in Living Wage rates this year has largely been driven by rising fuel and rent costs.
The Living Wage movement continues to grow
New Living Wage employers announced yesterday include FTSE 100 construction firms Taylor Wimpey and Persimmon Homes, Fujitsu, food delivery company Getir, and Capita. They join half of the FTSE 100 companies, household names like Aviva, Burberry, Everton FC and Lush as well as thousands of small businesses, who are choosing to pay the real Living Wage to ensure all staff earn a wage that meets the real cost of living.
More than 3,000 employers have been accredited with the Living Wage Foundation since the start of the global pandemic.
Metro Mayors in London and Greater Manchester have also today announced major new commitments to create Living Wage City Regions which could see thousands more pay rises.
Looking globally, the Living Wage campaign also today launches Living Wage for the US; the first coordinated national effort set up to ensure that workers across the United States are paid a real Living Wage.
Low pay in the UK
The announcement of the new rates comes in the wake of new research by the Living Wage Foundation demonstrating the scale of low pay during the pandemic, with 4.8 million jobs (17.1 per cent of employee jobs) still paying less than the real Living Wage. Northern Ireland had the highest proportion of jobs paying below the Living Wage (21.3 per cent or 236,000) and the South East the lowest (12.8 per cent or 533,000).
People from racialised groups were more likely to be low paid. 19.4 per cent of these workers earn below the LW compared to 16.3 per cent of white workers.
Katherine Chapman - Living Wage Foundation Director - said, “With living costs rising so rapidly, today’s new Living Wage rates will provide hundreds of thousands of workers and their families with greater security and stability.
For the past 20 years, the Living Wage movement has shaped the debate on low pay, showing what is possible when responsible employers step up and provide a wage that delivers dignity. Despite this, there are still millions trapped in working poverty, struggling to keep their heads above water - and these are people working in jobs that kept society going during the pandemic like social care workers and cleaners. We know that the Living Wage is good for businesses as well as workers, and as we rebuild our economy post-pandemic, the real Living Wage must be at its heart.”
Source: Living Wage Foundation
(Quote and links via original reporting)