More than 150,000 workers in the UK whose firms are signed up to the voluntary living wage rate are set to get a pay rise.
The voluntary rate, promoted by the Living Wage Foundation campaign group, is to rise by 30p an hour to £8.75. For those living in London, the rate will rise by 45p to £10.20 an hour.
About 3,600 firms are signed up to the scheme, including Ikea and Google. It is separate from the government’s compulsory national minimum wage and the national living wage. Meanwhile, research conducted by IHS Markit has found that 21% of people working in the UK are still earning a salary that is below the living wage.
The real UK living wage currently stands at £8.45 per hour outside of London and £9.75 within the capital.
The research showed that the total number of people earning below the real living wage is down slightly – by around 100,000 – on last year’s figure, but still around 1m higher than in 2012.
Female workers are hit hardest – with one in four female employees earning less than the real living wage, compared to 16% of men.
Source: BBC news, FT, The independent, The Observer
