DECEMBER 2018

A REAL LIVING WAGE For Real People's Lives
What is the real living wage needed to live in the
UK? According figures announced in November,
it’s a minimum of £9 per hour – or £10.55 per hour
if you live in London – for everyone over 18.
These numbers are up from £8.75 (London:
£10.20) in 2017, driven by higher transport costs,
private rents and council tax feeding through to
the basket of goods and services that underpin the
rates, which are independently calculated based
on what people need to get by.
The real living wage is also significantly higher
than the government’s own ‘national living
wage’ of £7.83 for those aged 25 and over, and the
minimum wage for those aged 21-24 (£7.38) and 18-
21 (just £5.90).
The rates are calculated by the Living Wage
Foundation, an independent collective of
businesses and people who believe that “a
hard day’s work deserves a fair day’s pay”. The
Foundation “celebrates and recognises the
leadership of responsible employers who choose to
go further and pay a real living wage based on the
cost of living, not just the government minimum”.
“The Living Wage campaign is about tackling
the rising problem of people paid less than they
need to live,” says Living Wage Foundation
director, Tess Lanning. “Responsible businesses
know that the government minimum is not enough
to live on, and [the] new real living wage rates
will provide a boost for hundreds of thousands
of workers throughout the UK.”
She added: “Employers that pay the real
living wage enable their workers to live a life of
dignity, supporting them to pay off debts and
meet the pressures of rising bills. We want to
see local councils, universities, football clubs,
bus companies and the other major public and
private sector employers in every city commit to
become real Living Wage employers. When they
do, thousands of people get a pay rise, but other
local employers also follow their lead. If more of
these institutions step up, we can start to build
true Living Wage places.”
The Foundation provides accreditation to
organisations which pay the real living wage to
all directly employed staff and have a plan to
pay all contractors a real living wage. Over 4,700
employers across the UK are currently accredited,
including a third of the FTSE 100 and big
household names such as IKEA and Everton FC.
Several co-operatives and credit unions have
signed up to the campaign, too, including,
the Co-operative Party, Lister Housing
Co-op. Eighth Day, the Wales Co-operative Centre
and Co-op News, among others.
And it was the Labour and Co-operative Mayor
of Manchester, Andy Burnham, who announced
the new rates in the city on 5 November. The event
was hosted at the National Football Museum,
which was accredited this autumn.
“Life has become too hard for people these days,
it’s too precarious,” said Mr Burnham. “If people
haven’t got enough money to pay the rent, they’re
just a few days away from being on the streets.
That has to change, and the real living wage can
be a part of that change.”
He added that while some may view the real
living wage as a burden on businesses, it was in
44 | DECEMBER 2018