| Scottish Enterprise Points the Way on Living Wage |
Scottish Enterprise Points the Way on Living Wage
Scottish Enterprise today became the latest employer to be given a Stage 1 Scottish Living Wage Employer Award following the announcement that all directly employed staff are to be paid above £7 an hour. Scottish Enterprise is now the latest in a growing band of employers in Scotland that recognise the benefits of paying a decent wage to all staff. The move by Scottish Enterprise shows that despite the recession, employers in the public and private sector can still take action to deliver on their social responsibilities.
The Scottish Living Wage Award Stage 1 is awarded to those employers who pay all of their workers no less than the Scottish Living Wage of £7.00 per hour. The Scottish Living Wage Campaign will now be working with Scottish Enterprise to ensure that all subcontracted staff are covered by the living wage. Peter Kelly, Director of the Poverty Alliance and chair of the Scottish Living Wage Campaign, said:
“We are delighted with Scottish Enterprise’s decision to pay the living wage to all of its employees. This is important not just for the pay boost that these workers will receive. It sends a message out to employers in the public and private sector is that low pay is unacceptable. We believe that poverty pay is bad for workers, bad for business and bad for society as a whole.
We hope that Scottish Enterprise will now be encouraging all those they work with in the private sector to ensure that they pay the living wage.”
The Public Commercial and Service Union (PCS) is a supporter of the Scottish Living Wage Campaign and have negotiated the new deal with Scottish Enterprise. Lynn Henderson, PCS Scottish Secretary, said:
“A living wage makes a real difference to workers, including those in Scottish Enterprise represented by PCS. Our union is delighted to be part of the Scottish Living Wage campaign, and hopes that Scottish Enterprise is the first amongst other civil and public service employers to ensure that all of their staff can earn a living wage.”
ENDS
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Notes to editors:
1. The Scottish Living Wage Campaign is lead by the Poverty Alliance, The STUC, the Church of Scotland and UNISON. The Campaign is working with community groups, voluntary organisations, faith based organisations and trade unions to improve the pay of workers across Scotland. For more information about the campaign visit www.povertyalliance.org/scottishlivingwage
2. The Living Wage Employer Award is made in recognition of those employers who pay all of their staff the minimum of the Scottish Living Wage of 7.00 per hour or are working towards this.
There are two stages to the Award:
Stage 1: Employers are eligible if they pay all of their staff the minimum of the Scottish Living Wage but have not yet been able to move to including contracted staff in the living wage. By accepting this award employers are committing to work with the Scottish Living Wage Campaign to ensure that all of their employees are paid the living wage within an agreed timeframe.
Stage 2: Employers are eligible if they pay all of their staff, either directly employed or contracted no less than the Scottish Living Wage. Contracted staff will spend the majority of their time working on the employers premises.
Both awards require employers to offer statutory holiday entitlement and recognise workers rights to be represented by a trade union.
3. The first Scottish Living Wage Employer award was given to Glasgow City Council in May this year. Since then the Glasgow has launched its own Glasgow Living Wage Employer Award. More than 100 organisations have signed up to this.