HUNDREDS of thousands of workers will get a pay rise as the Real Living Wage increases today.
Employees of companies including Nationwide, Oxfam and Ikea will all see their hourly rate increase to almost £14 an hour.
Wages will rise today for almost half a million workers[/caption]
As of today, the real living wage will rise by 60p to £12.60 an hour across the UK or by 70p to £13.85 if you live in London.
The real living wage is different from the government-set minimum wage – it is the only UK pay rate based on the cost of living.
Employers have the right to choose whether they want to offer the real living wage to workers – they are not legally required to do so.
The government’s national living wage is based on recommendations from trade unions and small businesses, and is set this year at a minimum hourly rate of £11.44 for workers over the age of 21.
Across the UK there are over 15,995 companies which pay the real living wage following a campaign on workers’ rights in 2001 by Citizens UK.
Big and small companies across the charity, public and private sectors have pledged to pay the Real Living Wage to their employers.
Here are some well-known examples:
- Nationwide
- Burberry
- Chelsea Football Club
- Everton Football Club
- Liverpool Football Club
- Ikea
- Lush
- The Royal Albert Hall
- ITV
- Saga
- University of Cambridge
- Transport for Greater Manchester
- Thames Water
- Scottish Power
- Ring Go
- Jamie Oliver
- National Express
- Insignia Technologies
- Santander
- Unifrog
- Which?
More than 100 independent businesses, such as coffee shops, pubs and restaurants are also signed up to the fair pay scheme.
For example:
- Twenty Coffee Company, Bristol
- The Three Chimneys, Isle of Skye
- The Swan, York
- St Canna’s Ale House, Cardiff
- Brixton Blend Coffee Shop, London
If you want to browse the full list of companies and find out more, you can visit the Real Living Wage Foundation website.
Here you can use searching filters to sift through the companies by region, industry and sector.
There is also an interactive map which you can use to find out which ones on the list are near you.
Just type in your postcode or the type of business you are looking for and it will show you local employers which are on the scheme.
Katherine Chapman, director of the Real Living Wage Foundation said low-paid workers have been “hardest hit by the cost of living crisis.”
She said: “The real living wage remains the only UK wage rate calculated based on actual living costs, and the new rates announced today will make a massive difference to almost half a million workers who will see their pay increase.”
What is the difference between the National Living Wage and the National Minimum Wage?
The National Living Wage and the National Minimum Wage are two different things.
They are both set by the government – so are separate from the Real Living Wage.
The National Living Wage is the legal minimum employers have to pay workers aged 21 and over and is £11.44 an hour.
Before 1 April 2024 the National Living Wage was for those aged 23 and over and was £10.42 an hour.
The National Minimum Wage is the minimum amount that workers under 21 are entitled to.
Exactly how much you get depends on how old you are.
So if you are 21 or over you are entitled to at least £11.44 an hour.
While if you’re 18 to 20, the minimum wage is £8.60 an hour.
And if you’re under 18 or an apprentice this is £6.40 an hour.
When was the minimum wage introduced?
THE first National Minimum Wage was put in place in 1998 by the Labour government.
It originally applied to workers aged 22 and over, and there was a separate rate for those aged 18-21.
A separate rate for 16-17-year-olds was introduced in 2004, and in 2010, 21-year-olds became eligible for the adult rate of the National Minimum Wage.
The rate is set by the Government each year based on recommendations by the Low Pay Commission (LPC).
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