Cllr Sarah Baigent (Castle) has been speaking about the importance of a wage that keeps pace with rising living costs, for Living Wage Week (15 – 21 Nov).

What is the living wage?

The ‘Living Wage’ is based on an independently calculated ‘real cost of living’. It is paid by nearly 9,000 employers across the UK, who believe that we all need a wage that meets our everyday needs. It promotes equality, and also benefits businesses. The new Living Wage rates of £9.90 (£11.05 in London) were announced on Monday 15^th November as part of Living Wage Week. Cambridge City Council became a Living Wage employer in November 2014, winning an award for its work in 2019, and continues to work with employers across the city to sign up.  It is only by working in partnership with the full range of Cambridge stakeholders in our beautiful city that real change will be achieved ‘collectively.’

Find out more about the Living Wage on their web site here: https://www.livingwage.org.uk/ which includes an interactive map of the Living Wage businesses in your area. Cambridge has 61 businesses and organisations who are now accredited as Living Wage employers, with 24,838 employees. 1079 employees have been uplifted to a Real Living Wage as a result of their employers signing up.

Find out more about them here: https://www.cambridge.gov.uk/living-wage

Cambridge had 15 new accreditations in 2021, and now has the highest number of LW accredited employers in the East of England.

What am we asking of businesses and why?

As Lead Councillor for Anti-Poverty, I want to thank all the employers who are already Real Living Wage accredited. Because of you, over 1,000 employees have received a pay rise. And I implore all local businesses and organisations to act now and do all they can to join Cambridge’s accredited Real Living Wage employers. We need more employers to sign up and increase the overall numbers – we would especially love to see more Cambridge colleges signing up. This will speed up the rate of change needed to help alleviate poverty and raise standards of living for those most in need.

The challenges we’re facing

There has been a lot of progress here in Cambridge, but we still have some way to go as Deputy Leader Anna Smith, has highlighted:

‘While Cambridge is a very prosperous City overall, more than 12,200 people are paid below the Real Living Wage and many are experiencing real hardship as a result. Over the past 2 years, the pandemic has deepened inequalities even further and exacerbated issues such as digital exclusion, food poverty and homelessness’.

In 2020 the Centre for Cities identified Cambridge City as the most unequal city in the UK two years in a row. This does not mean that we have the poorest areas in the UK in absolute terms but what it does mean is that the divide between rich and poor is the widest. If you look at the Indices of Multiple Deprivation, there are a number of Lower Super Output Areas (LSOAs) in Cambridge that are in the to 20% most deprived in the UK. We also know that the gap in healthy life expectancy between the most and least deprived wards in Cambridge is rising, and now stands at over 11 years for both men and women.

Raising awareness about the Living Wage is one of the central strands of the support we offer to those residents who are struggling.

What difference would be paid the real living wage mean to those struggling?

I am a ward councillor for Castle, and I know through the casework I do, and speaking with residents, that although the area is often viewed as one of the most affluent wards in the city there are invisible and unacknowledged pockets of hardship. One resident put into words what difference being paid the Living Wage can make when she told me:

“The rise to living wage will make a huge difference to families in the area. We hear slogans being thrown around about families having to choose between heating or eating etc. But for me personally, and also friends in similar positions, it runs a lot deeper.

 

It is the difference between my little girl being able to continue her dance class, my son being able to play for his football team or join any other clubs they might be interested in. My son has recently started secondary school and free school meals aren’t available if you earn over a certain amount per year. This means I now have to find nearly £100 per month in order for him to be able to go to the canteen with his friends.

 

No parent wants their child to feel like they’re missing out and in turn this causes severe mental effects on many parents who will feel like they are failing with no sign of things getting any better anytime soon.”

It’s not just about juggling the family finances and trying to balance the household budget. It cuts deeper than that, and really impacts physical and mental wellbeing. The sheer stress of constantly struggling to make ends meet can really take its toll. That’s why paying a living wage is such an important policy issue for us all to consider, to engage with – and it’s why we need to lobby central government to make changes in business employment law.

What are we at the City Council doing about it?

Council officers and community partners are working hard to find a way forward that has real impact on residents’ lives. Policies are of little use if they do not create real change and work together with other initiatives around the city. Equally, we need everyone to play their part if we are going to realise the fast-paced change that is needed.

We are a living wage employer ourselves, and are very committed to the Real Living Wage campaign. As far as we know, we are the only council in the country to have a living wage officer, who is able to support employers in making the shift. We’ve just run our annual event for employers, where we hear from the Real Living Wage Foundation and other groups about how employers can help tackle poverty and inequality in the city. And we are also exploring whether Cambridge can build on its work so far by becoming a ‘Living Wage Place’.

While the demands on council budgets are increasing, their funding from central government is decreasing year-on-year. Over ten years of austerity have left their mark on our communities. Councillors and officers are having to work over and above to deliver output to support those in poverty, and living on the margins. The City Council is committed to finding ‘long-term’, sustainable solutions to some of these issues and helping people out of this cycle on disadvantage. But we also need central government to recognise and address the enormity of the issue, the inequality that has only deepened as a result of the pandemic – and is likely to continue getting worse before it gets better.

We want Cambridge to lead the way and be a beacon for other cities across the country to emulate.

Benefits of Living Wage accreditation

The Living Wage Foundation (LWF) has outlined the clear benefits to employers of paying a Living Wage. It’s not only good for society, it’s good for business too. Nationally:

• 60% of businesses say that RLW has improved their recruitment of employees on RLW
• 62% say RLW has improved relations between staff and management
• 86% say it’s improved the reputation of their business
• 93% say it’s benefitted their businesses

Any business that signs up will appear on the LWF website and interactive map. Anyone looking for work, or wanting to spend money with a business can search it to find out which businesses are LW accredited.

Businesses and organisations that sign up will receive a LW employer plaque and are entitled to use the LW employer mark in any publicity or marketing. Being seen as an employer who stands up for employees’ rights to a wage that meets the costs of living, who goes beyond what the Government’s own minimum wage, has huge benefits. It’s good business sense too, and gives employees a reason to invest in your organisation (both physically and emotionally), meaning increased retention of high quality staff.

What can you do?

It doesn’t stop at the end of Living Wage Week. Individuals can, and do, choose to give their custom to businesses that are Living Wage accredited. We are asking businesses and organisations who aren’t accredited yet to act now. If you’re an employer, come and talk to us and find out more! Council officers will be happy to tell you all about the scheme and offer advice and help. It is only by working together that we can bring about real change that is sustainable for present and future generations, and ‘One Cambridge Fair For All.’

Living Wage Facts and Figures

It doesn’t stop at the end of Living Wage Week. Individuals can, and do, choose to give their custom to businesses that are Living Wage accredited. We are asking businesses and organisations who aren’t accredited yet to act now. If you’re an employer, come and talk to us and find out more! Council officers will be happy to tell you all about the scheme and offer advice and help. It is only by working together that we can bring about real change that is sustainable for present and future generations, and ‘One Cambridge Fair For All.’