The “real living wage” has increased to £9.50 an hour.
The Real Living Wage, which differs from the National Living Wage, which is £8.72 an hour for anyone over the age of 25.
Over 250,000 people are employees that receive the Real Living Wage, who will from today get a 20p rise to their wage. In London, the increase is 10p to £10.85.
The rise to the wage was a response to the pandemic, to help support families who have been economically affected.
Laura Gardiner, Living Wage Foundation director, said: “It’s an incredibly challenging time for us all, but today’s new living wage rates will give a boost to hundreds of thousands of UK workers, including thousands of key and essential workers like cleaners, care workers, and delivery drivers who have kept our economy going.
“Since the start of the pandemic employers have continued to sign up to a real living wage. During Living Wage Week it’s right that we celebrate those employers that have done right by workers and families, providing them with much needed security and stability even when times are hard. These are the employers that will allow us to recover and rebuild from this crisis.”
Research from the Living Wage Foundation has found that 20% of all employees in the UK are paid less than the living wage – including 70.8% of jobs in the hospitality sector.
Tate and Lyle, Network Rail, and Capital One are just three of the 7,000 employers in the UK who pay the living wage.