Utmost Group is pleased to announce that it has become an accredited Living Wage Employer in the UK. Our Living Wage commitment is confirmation that all UK employees at the Utmost Group earn at least the real Living Wage. This commitment applies not only to directly employed staff but also to our third party contracted staff.
The real Living Wage is an independently calculated hourly rate of pay based on the actual cost of living. It is currently £9.50 in the UK with a higher rate of £10.85 in London, reflecting the higher costs of living in the capital. Both rates are significantly higher than the government minimum for over 23s, which currently stands at £8.91 per hour.
Utmost Group is based in London, a region where nearly a fifth of all jobs (19%) pay less than the real Living Wage - around 785,000 jobs. Despite this, Utmost Group 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.
The accreditation demonstrates the Group’s commitment to creating a positive impact in the communities where we operate, a core part of our sustainability strategy.
Although the Living Wage Foundation is focussed on the UK, Utmost Group monitors its employees pay across all our locations and ensures fair pay for work undertaken.
Paul Thompson, Utmost Group CEO commented:
“We are proud to support the work of the Living Wage Foundation by becoming an accredited employer and ensure our UK-based employees and third party contracted staff will be paid the real Living Wage as a minimum. It is the right thing to do, especially in these challenging times. It will help us attract and retain a diverse range of colleagues which brings benefits to the communities where we operate.”
Laura Gardiner, Director, Living Wage Foundation commented:
“We are delighted that Utmost Group 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 Utmost Group, believe that a hard day’s work deserves a fair day’s pay.”