‘Nearly one in four people in the Perth area aren’t earning a real Living Wage’
In this Q&A Phil McGuinness, the Poverty Alliance’s accreditation officer in Perth and Kinross, explains how he plans to persuade more local employers to pay the real Living Wage of £8.45 per hour ...
“I grew up in South Shields in a family that ran a small business that had been in the town for two generations, and I’m proud of that. For a while South Shields had the highest unemployment rates in the UK. Although my own family was middle class, we were surrounded by families who, even if they were working, could barely get by.
“I wanted a career where I could make a difference to ordinary people’s livelihoods and also where I could help small and medium sized businesses. The real Living Wage ticks all those boxes. It’s good for employees who are better able to get by, and shows that businesses are going the extra mile for their staff.” livelihoods of their employees. And in towns like the one I grew up in, a good reputation as an employer makes great business sense. After all, your employees are often your customers too!”
Phil McGuinness, the Poverty Alliance’s accreditation officer in Perth and Kinross. Pic: Graham Hunter earning a real Living Wage that’s nearly one in four people, which is higher than the national average in Scotland of one in five.
There are clear business benefits to becoming accredited. Employers can make definite savings in terms of staff turnover and recruiting higher quality staff. Research shows the real Living Wage can cut absenteeism by 25% through treating staff fairly – this also improves staff morale for the whole team by 78%. For those employers already doing the right thing, it helps you get the credit you deserve as well as take that message out to those suppliers of staff for your company who are ‘in scope’.
“Prospective employees see the Living Wage accreditation as a great kitemark. A recent poll by Survation in April 2017 for the Poverty Alliance found that around 70% would encourage family and friends to work with an accredited Living Wage employer.”
“The UK lags behind the rest of Europe in terms of wage growth. Wages may be enough to scrape by on but they’re not enough to allow people to go on holiday, start a family, even go out or get driving lessons so they can get around, particularly vital in rural communities.
“Earning the real Living Wage of £8.45 an hour (£9.75 in London) can mean a person doesn’t have to work two jobs to get by and can spend more time with their children, for example.
“It’s less stressful, it’s better for families and the community. It’s a benefit to society as a whole.”
“It’s easy to do as it’s an online licence that takes 10 minutes to fill in. To sign up immediately you need to ensure your directly employed staff are on the real Living Wage and have a robust plan in place for any relevant subcontracted staff.
“From there, they can get in touch with us at accreditation@ povertyalliance.org or call 0141 353 0440 and ask to speak to me.
“We’ll go through the steps towards accreditation and I’m more than happy to come out and meet them.
“Accrediting means they join an employer-led network that gives an opportunity to learn from others, attend and organise events, and support a movement that addresses in-work poverty in Scotland.”
“Employers choose to pay the real Living Wage, set by the Living Wage Foundation, on a voluntary basis. The National Living Wage/ National Minimum Wage – set by the UK Government – is lower and is the legal minimum an employer can pay an employee.”
“Businesses shouldn’t fear the paperwork, it’s easy to do. The online licence takes around 10 minutes to fill in if you’ve done all your checking.
“And the criteria doesn’t apply to all suppliers, only those contracted staff on your premises two hours a day over an eightweek period.”