Real Living Wage makes a real difference - Foysol Choudhury
A new chapter for UK workers is beginning to take shape as Labour’s Employment Rights Bill marks a significant step toward tackling insecure work and strengthening protections for employees from day one.
Now moving through the House of Lords, the Bill faces predictable resistance; but the demand for stronger employment rights remains as urgent as ever.
Meanwhile, the UK Government’s proposal to increase the National Minimum Wage signals a broader recognition that wages must keep pace with the cost of living, and that closing the gap with the Real Living Wage is long overdue.
This national picture mirrors the progress already taking place in Scotland, where a renewed commitment to workers’ rights is taking hold. We continue to see that more and more employers in Scotland are paying their workers the real Living Wage. There are now more people on the real Living Wage in Scotland than anywhere else in the UK.
Here in Edinburgh, nearly 800 employers are now accredited Living Wage organisations. Year after year, the city continues to move closer to its Fair Work ambitions, and its accreditation as a
Living Wage City reflects a wider effort to tackle poverty and embed fair work practices across the local economy.
This progress is the result of steady collaboration between the Council, trade unions and employers who recognise that raising pay is essential to building a more resilient workforce.
These statistics reflect the fact that, contrary to what some might think, the Living Wage is in fact good for business: 94% of accredited employers report that paying the real Living Wage has strengthened their organisation. They’ve seen better staff retention, higher morale, and
improvements in reputation. In practice, fair pay has proved to be not a risk, but one of the best investments a business can make.
However, while this momentum is positive, there’s still a long way to go. In-work poverty continues to put real pressure on people across the city, a challenge the UK Government itself
has acknowledged by instructing the Low Pay Commission to move towards a single adult pay band and signalling a potential 4.1% increase in the National Minimum Wage.
At the same time, reducing in-work poverty means addressing the 11.4% of jobs in Scotland that still fall below the real Living Wage. As more employers choose to adopt it, the closer we move to ensuring security and dignity for workers across Edinburgh and Scotland.