'Rallying call' for North Ayrshire businesses to pay real Living Wage
More than 50 employers pay the real Living Wage in the region, and now others are being urged to do the same
Businesses in North Ayrshire are being urged to make a commitment to paying the real Living Wage, to help workers in the region through the Cost-of-Living Crisis.
North Ayrshire Council is already among around 3,000 employers across Scotland paying the real Living Wage, which has led to around 64,000 workers in the country receiving a pay rise, and now Depute Leader Shaun Macaulay has issued a rallying call to all businesses across the area to do the same.
The new hourly pay rate of £12 for 2024 - which is independently calculated by The Resolution Foundation – was announced on October 24 and is based on what people in the UK need to earn to afford a decent standard of living.
Real Living Wage takes things like childcare and transport into account
It is paid voluntarily by employers, and the price of childcare, transport, heating and housing are all taken into account when the rate is set.
The Council has been a Living Wage Employer since.
Councillor Macaulay said: “Here in North Ayrshire, more than 50 employers pay the real Living Wage and I would encourage others to follow suit if possible.
“People are the most valuable asset of any business, and taking care of staff has many benefits including greater staff retention and increased morale.
“The ongoing Cost-of-Living Crisis - which is seeing many people face higher winter bills than previous years, increased inflation and wage freezes – means employees genuinely need support right now.”
How do businesses become accredited?
The two key requirements for businesses to become accredited are:
• All directly-employed staff aged 18 and over must be paid at least the real Living Wage and
• to the extent permitted by law, all regular contracted workers must also be paid the real Living Wage.
The real Living Wage is different to the UK Government’s National Living Wage, which is not calculated according to what employees need to live on.
Speaking to Greatest Hits Radio News Councillor Macaulay said: “I can understand why, financially, some businesses might be quite hesitant, but my advice to those businesses is reach out to the Living Wage foundation, reach out to North Ayrshire Council.
“We’re more than happy to engage with businesses and support them to get this accreditation.”
Ardrossan-based housing charity has already signed up
The Council works closely with Ardrossan-based housing, debt and welfare charity CHAP, which is an accredited employer and recently welcomed Councillor Macaulay for a visit to its base in Princes Street.
CHAP’s process of accreditation started two years ago, through a meeting with the Fair Work Ayrshire programme team.
This provided the catalyst to review the entire wage structure, and resulted in the charity funding staff to undertake additional, voluntary training through SVQs.
CHAP CEO Debbie Alexander said: “We exist to improve hope and wellbeing for our clients, not just through providing free, debt and housing advice but by recognising that debt occurs through a huge variety of circumstances.