Edinburgh Living Wage Action Group celebrated another success last night (Thursday 17 November) when it was named winner of the Outstanding Leadership Award at the annual Scottish Living Wage Awards.
Launched in November 2021, the Scottish Living Wage award for Edinburgh action group is a partnership of Edinburgh employers from a range of sectors, all committed to helping to make Edinburgh a Living Wage City.
In its award citation, the Scottish Living Wage Foundation recognised the group for the immediate impact it has had in Edinburgh since its inception, and the ways members are using their local influence to help grow the number of real living wage employers in the city.
Over 580 businesses in Edinburgh are now accredited as ‘Living Wage employers’, a number higher than any other city in Scotland. Since the launch of the action group Edinburgh has seen a record-breaking increase in new accreditations with close to 120 more employers committing to pay a real living wage and giving guaranteed direct pay rises to 1,400 workers in the city.
Cllr Jane Meagher, chair of the Edinburgh Living Wage Action Group and Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work Convener for the City of Edinburgh Council, said:
At a time when the cost of living crisis is making life hard for so many people and so many businesses in Edinburgh, this is a great time to celebrate and to thank the record number of employers who are taking the step to make sure their workers are paid a decent wage that provides enough to live on.
The Edinburgh Living Wage Action Group is full of inspiring employers and business leaders who are determined to make this city a great place to work and to thrive. We’re proud of the progress we’ve made this year, and this award is a fantastic boost that makes us ever more committed to making Edinburgh a Living Wage City.
Kat Brogan, Managing Director at Mercat Tours, said:
The motivation to promote the benefits of the Real Living Wage through the Edinburgh City LW Action Group comes from the impact we see on our own team – morale, loyalty and quality of work. However it runs far deeper – this group champions the benefits of REAL LIVING, beyond the hourly rate paid to your team. Respect, dignity and fulfilling work benefits individuals, teams, businesses and our community to thrive and flourish.
Additional information
Edinburgh Living Wage Action Group were launched in November 2021 with a goal of doubling the number of living wage accredited businesses in Edinburgh over 5 years.
The group is chaired by Cllr Jane Meagher. Other members include representatives from the following organisations: Mercat Tours Ltd, Abrdn plc, Paper Tiger, Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce, Edinburgh Dog and Cat Home, University of Edinburgh, Scottish Financial Enterprise, and Unite the Union.
The real Living Wage is an independently calculated rate based on the cost of living and is paid voluntarily by employers. The rate is currently £10.90 and is calculated annually by The Resolution Foundation on an analysis of the wage that employees need to earn in order to afford the basket of goods required for a decent standard of living. This basket of goods includes housing, childcare, transport and heating costs.
The real Living Wage is different to the UK government’s National Living Wage which is not calculated according to what employees need to live on.
For more details on the Living wage movement, please visit Living Wage Scotland | The real Living Wage (scottishlivingwage.org)