The Brighton & Hove Living Wage Campaign has recently reached 700 local employers signed up with over 3640 wages raised as a result!
We have invited the Living Wage employers to get together (virtually) to celebrate on 27 May to network and to hear from Council Leader Cllr Phelim MacCafferty, Sue Bowes previously at UNISON Brighton and living wage employer Vic Borrill, Director at Brighton & Hove Food Partnership.
Since the pandemic started, businesses have found themselves in an extremely challenging situation – but we are so pleased that employers have continued to join the campaign steadily each week.
Recent signups include: 67 Degrees, Brighton and Hove News, Freedom Works, My Home Care and Brighton Table Tennis Club.
The campaign has been run by Brighton Chamber since 2012, supported by Brighton & Hove City Council and Unison Brighton.
Now in its nineth year, Sarah Springford, CEO at Brighton Chamber said:
“We are pleased that in spite of the impact of Covid and the challenges that many businesses have faced, 100 employers have signup to the campaign during the last 12 months.”
The aim of the campaign is to support and encourage local businesses to voluntarily pay all employees the real Living Wage instead of the government’s national minimum. This amounts to £9.50 per hour for Brighton & Hove, and the UK.
The Living Wage is reviewed every year, independently calculated by the Resolution Foundation based on the average costs of leading a decent life in the UK.
Vic Borrill, Director at Brighton & Hove Food Partnership said:
“Paying the Living Wage is crucial in preventing food poverty and its associated impact on mental and physical health and educational attainment. Household food insecurity is a very concerning ongoing issue for Brighton & Hove with 5310 people (including 1300 children) receiving support with food each week. Many of those receiving support are in work. Paying the Living Wage and offering secure employment contracts are key to helping lift people out of the poverty that causes them to make impossible choices such as paying the rent or paying for food. This is why the Food Partnership supports the Living Wage Campaign and thanks to everyone who signs up to be a Living Wage employer.”
Paying the Living Wage is an opportunity for local businesses to help support fair pay, show they value their staff, and also inspire local businesses in other areas to follow in their footsteps. It can be a powerful statement of Brighton & Hove values. 74% of businesses said the Living Wage had a positive impact on their staff and 85% said that it was important for business.
It’s free to sign up and takes less than 5 minutes. If you’d like to join the Brighton & Hove’s Living Wage employers, head to the campaign’s website today!
Do follow us on social media for all the latest on the campaign and its growing number of employers.
Twitter: @BHLivingWage
Facebook: @BHLivingWage
LinkedIn: Brighton & Hove Living Wage Campaign
Help to improve the quality of living, fairness, and to help retain valuable staff.
Brighton is a fantastic but expensive place to live. We believe in helping our staff to maintain a good work/life balance.
"Initiatives like the Living Wage Campaign strengthen the local business community and secure the respect of its employees by recognising the changing economic climate of our rapidly growing city."
The Living Wage represents a level of pay that brings individuals and families out of poverty and promotes social inclusion. We strongly believe that no-one living in our city, or indeed our country, should be in work and yet still unable to support their needs and the needs of their family. Everyone should be paid…
"The STAGES team should be paid their worth. It’s the right thing to do. They are an amazing group of people and without them STAGES would not be able to deliver the quality customer care, on which the company bases its ethics and business model."
