Living Wage Review 2022 – September, not November

The Living Wage rates are announced at the start of ‘Living Wage Week’, often in November annually.? On 29 May 2022, ahead of any announcement of such a week in 2022, the Living Wage Foundation announced it will be bringing its new 2022/323 rate announcement forward to September, in response to the rising cost of living.

The Living Wage is an independently-set rate with the calculation overseen by the Living Wage Foundation.? It is based on Minimum Income Standard (MIS), which is an indication of the wage needed for a minimum acceptable standard of living ‘based on what members of the public think’.? Loughborough University's Centre for Research in Social Policy (CRSP) perform this calculation, largely funded by the Joseph Roundtree Foundation.?

The MIS is also referred to in the Scottish Government's fuel poverty measure and targets and reference is enshrined in the Fuel Poverty (Targets, Definition and Strategy) (Scotland) Act 2019.

The Living Wage is not the same as the National Living Wage or the National Minimum Wage and there is no statutory basis for operation.? As such, it is a voluntary wage rate.? There are other facts worth pointing out:

• The Living Wage Foundation claims that over 10,000 employers are accredited by them as ‘Living Wage Employers’
• The rate applies to everyone over the age of 18 and employers are asked to implement updated rates as soon as possible and within 6 months
• However, Living Wage accreditation does not require employers to pay the voluntary Living Wage to apprentices
• The current rates (from 15 November 2021) are ￡9.90 per hour across the UK but ￡11.05 for workplaces in all boroughs in Greater London.? On a 37.5-hour week, this equates to an annual salary of ￡19,305 (￡21,548 for the London Living Wage)

Accredited Living Wage Employers are advised to look for further announcements and should, perhaps, register to receive the newsletter.? However, this does require the employer to complete the form ‘Become a Living Wage Employer’.? Although, there is a ‘Make a General Enquiry’ form that also allows employers to opt into the newsletter.

The Living Wage Foundation’s guide is good information?and talks about the process for being an accredited Living Wage employer with common FAQs such as:

• Who does the Living Wage apply to?
• How long does it take to become accredited? And, importantly,
• What about third-party contracted staff, workers and the self-employed?