WORKERS’ unions in the South West have called for the living wage to be introduced for all, as new minimum wage rates came into force last week.
Trades Union Congress regional secretary Nigel Costley said that Cornwall ’is indebted to its army of minimum wage heroes’.
’Many of these people - including care workers, supermarket staff, and delivery drivers – are currently on the frontline of the battle against coronavirus. They deserve every penny of this increase, and more,’ he said.
’Before the pandemic, thousands of workers were already struggling to make ends meet. And now in this crisis, we’re sure even more will face financial hardship.
’The best way to show our respect to our heroic workers is to get the minimum wage up to a real living wage as soon as possible.’
One in five UK employees earn below the so-called “real living wage” calculated by the charity the Living Wage Foundation.
They include hundreds of thousands of key workers dubbed critical to the fight against the coronavirus crisis by the government, such as hospital cleaners and porters, teaching assistants and carers.
The Living Wage Foundation rate is £9.30 an hour for those working outside London. The Government’s National Minimum Wage is £8.20 for those aged 21-24 and the statutory National Living Wage for those aged 25 and over is now £8.72 an hour.
In Devon, 24 percent of jobs are paid at below the ’real living wage’ and in Cornwall, more than a quarter of jobs– some 51,000 - are paid less than £9.30 an hour.
The GMB union said the coronavirus crisis had shone a light on the “rock-bottom pay” of the people expected to ’risk their health to protect us’.
Economists have, however, urged against further wage rises before the full toll of the crisis is clear.