The Real Living Wage is recommended over the normal ‘minimum wage’, which is leaving people in full-time having to visit food banks in some cases. Iceland’s manager recently said that some people are even not buying potatoes or root veggies, as they can’t afford to boil them, once they get home.
You can’t just ‘roll up at a food bank’ as some MPs suggest. You usually have to prove income. Jack Monroe (who created the Vimes Food Index) says that the true cost of supermarket goods is making champagne cheaper in comparison than apples, which have gone up by way more in recent years.
At present, the government’s Living Wage (minimum wage) is less than the Real Living Wage (and is voluntary, though many employers are now choosing to use it). It costs less long-term, as staff on good pay and conditions stay longer, so it saves having to re-hire and advertise for staff yet again.
Reasons to Pay a Real Living Wage
Staff that are well looked after (including paid well) tend to be happier and healthier, and have a better life/work balance. They can buy nice things for their homes, eat better and afford child care.
The legal living wage is around £1.48 less than the voluntary Living Wage. That works out around an extra £60 a week, if working full-time. This can cover the cost of a dental check-up, a couple of pairs of quality vegan shoes, or calling someone out to fix a leaky appliance or dodgy boiler. The cost of a train fare to visit a relative.
Think of the difference that £60 a week can make to one employee’s life.
In February 2024, the government named 500 companies that were not even paying minimum wage (including high street brands who have been ordered to pay millions in backdated salaries). Most said it was due to ‘genuine errors’, and one even blamed the government for increasing the minimum age.
Clean for Good (London) is a company that pays all employees the voluntary Living Wage, in an industry (housekeeping for hotels) that is known for low salaries, while guests pay eye-popping prices for luxury suites.
Which Supermarkets Pay a Living Wage?
German-owned Aldi and Lidl do (just like furniture-company IKEA, due to be Swedish-owned).
Manchester’s Unicorn Grocery pays a proper Living Wage, with casual staff paid 80% of that (or the real Living Wage, whichever is higher).
Do MPs Know Prices of Everyday Goods?
Some do, others don’t. The ‘basket of goods’ is how the government’s Living Wage is calculated. It includes ‘everyday items’ like bread, milk and vegetables, with new items added yearly (this year’s additions were an air-fryer and hand gel).
Based on average earnings, the Real Living Wage (voluntary) is calculated by real people, not quangos at Whitehall on high salaries.
MPs present receive a salary of around £84K (plus expenses). When he was Prime Minister, David Cameron famously got cornered when asked if he knew the price of a loaf of bread. He got out of it by saying that he baked his own bread using granary flour. Then made things worse, by recommending a £100 bread-maker and premium flour (that cost over £30 for a bulk bag).
Similarly, Rishi Sunak when asked replied that as a health-conscious family, they all have different Hovis ‘seeded breads’. Both answers are fine – but not when they are then cutting benefits from the poorest in society, who then can’t afford to buy bread.
You can look up how your MP voted to cut or retain welfare benefits. There’s something that sticks about multi-millionaires cutting benefits of the poorest in society, whatever their arguments. At least they should try to live on them for a while.
To give him credit, former Tory MP Matthew Parris did try years ago in Tyneside. He spent £11 on food, and 62p for a bus to a £2 football game.
And when he had 61p left, he ran out of money for the meter and could not even afford to buy a drink at the local working men’s club. He soon gave up politics, and now writes (often excellent) articles for newspapers on society.
If you do not ensure that people are being paid a living wage, then you are going to have people who rely on government assistance. It’s that simple. Ron Crumpton
