Council decision helps mark 20 years of the real living wage

Living Wage Week 2021 will run from 15-21 November and mark 20 years of the ‘real living wage’ (RLW). Through the week, events will be held across the UK to celebrate the successes of the wage over the last year. Currently over 7,000 UK employers voluntarily pay the RLW which currently stands at £10.85 in London and £9.50 elsewhere in the UK. Each year, the Living Wage Foundation publishes the new RLW based on what employees and their families need to live, rather than the ‘national living wage’ (NLW), which is based on the Conservative government’s target to reach 66% of median earnings by 2024. One of the successes being celebrated this year is the recent decision of North Northants council to begin paying the RLW to all staff, including staff under the age of 23, except those on the national apprenticeship scheme. It means that staff at the council will receive a minimum hourly rate of £9.50 backdated to April 2021 and it will particularly affect care staff who work for the council as many of them are currently paid the NLW of £8.91 an hour. Jason Smithers, leader of the council, said: “The real living wage will provide a fairer pay rate for our dedicated and hardworking staff and I believe this is a major step in the right direction.” The announcement comes after a recent report from the Living Wage Foundation found that 73% of care workers in England are paid less than the £9.50 an hour of the RLW, and that more than half of home-care workers are on ze...
Source: UNISON Health care news - Category: UK Health Authors: Tags: Article living wage Living Wage Foundation living wage week Source Type: news