Livewell Group becomes a Living Wage employer

Livewell Group has accredited as a Living Wage Employer. The Living Wage commitment will see everyone working at Livewell Group receive a minimum hourly wage of £9.00 in the UK.

In the South West over a fifth of all jobs (23.4%) pay less than the real Living Wage – around 529,000 jobs. Despite this, Livewell Group has committed to pay the real Living Wage and deliver a fair day’s pay for a hard day’s work.

The real Living Wage is the only rate calculated according to the cost of living. It provides a voluntary benchmark for employers that wish to ensure their staff earn a wage they can live on, not just the government minimum. Since 2011 the Living Wage movement has delivered a pay rise to over 160,000 people and put over £800m extra into the pockets of low paid workers.

UNISON South West regional secretary Joanne Kaye said:

“We are really pleased that Livewell Group has adopted the Living Wage and recognises that it is good move for everyone: first employers – as it helps to motivate and retain staff; secondly, that it is good for staff to benefit from a decent standard of living; and thirdly, it makes local economy sense. Research shows low paid workers spend most of their income in their local community and Plymouth will  benefit from this boost to help counter the impact of the government’s continued and failing austerity measures.

“We look forward to more employers in our region implementing a fairer living wage, congratulations Livewell Group.”

UNISON national officer Abby Kimantas said: 

“It’s great to see that Livewell Group has become a living wage employer. UNISON campaigns for the real living wage to be paid because we believe workers should be able to live decently and provide for their families adequately.

“Livewell has joined many other employers in showing respect for its staff by wanting them to receive a fair rate of pay for the important work they do.”

Tess Lanning, Director, Living Wage Foundation said:

“We’re delighted that Livewell Group has joined the movement of over 4,700 responsible employers across the UK who voluntarily commit to go further than the government minimum to make sure all their staff earn enough to live on.

“They join a number of other Plymouth based business such as CATERed and Delt Shared Services, as well as household names such as IKEA, Heathrow Airport, Barclays, Chelsea and Everton Football Clubs and many more.

“These businesses recognise that paying the real Living Wage is the mark of a responsible employer and they, like Livewell Group, believe that a hard day’s work deserves a fair day’s pay.”