WHA has today been accredited as a Living Wage Employer. Our Living Wage commitment will see everyone working at WHA receive a minimum hourly wage of £9.50 in the UK or £10.85 in London. Both rates are significantly higher than the government minimum for over 23s, which currently stands at £8.91 per hour.
WHA is based the North West, a region with nearly a quarter of all jobs (20%) paying less than the real Living Wage – around 584,000 jobs. Despite this, WHA has committed to pay the real Living Wage and deliver a fair day’s pay for a hard day’s work.
The real Living Wage is the only rate calculated according to the costs of living. It provides a voluntary benchmark for employers that wish to ensure their staff earn a wage they can live on, not just the government minimum. Since 2011 the Living Wage movement has delivered a pay rise to over 250,000 people and put over £1.3 billion extra into the pockets of low paid workers.
Laura Gardiner, Director, Living Wage Foundation said: “We’re delighted that Warrington Housing Association has joined the movement of over 7,000 responsible employers across the UK who voluntarily commit to go further than the government minimum to make sure all their staff earn enough to live on.
“They join thousands of small businesses, as well as household names such as Burberry, Barclays, Everton Football Club and many more. These businesses recognise that paying the real Living Wage is the mark of a responsible employer and they, like Warrington Housing Association, believe that a hard day’s work deserves a fair day’s pay.”
