Joanne Thomas – Usdaw general secretary says: “The new real Living Wage rates are a welcome boost for the lowest-paid workers. On taking power, Labour changed the remit of the Low Pay Commission, so that they take account of the cost of living and work towards ending rip-off youth rates. We call on the Government to again announce a substantial increase in statutory rates to help close the gap with the real Living Wage. Usdaw is calling for a clear path towards £15 per hour for all workers aged over 18, and we call on employers to take notice of the new rates and negotiate increases in their base pay to reflect the cost of living.
“Labour is delivering the new deal for workers that Usdaw long campaigned for. The Employment Rights Bill, currently in its final parliamentary stages, will help secure economic growth by improving productivity and stop rogue employers undercutting those who treat their staff properly, while giving workers security, respect and the decency of an income they can live on. These protections for workers are the transformational changes that the country voted for, after 14 years of Tory chaos, austerity and attacks on workers’ rights.”
Notes for editors:
Usdaw (Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers) is one of the fastest growing unions in the TUC and the UK's fifth biggest trade union with around 360,000 members. Most Usdaw members work in the retail sector, but the union also has many members in transport, distribution, food manufacturing, chemical industry and other trades www.usdaw.org.uk
Living Wage Foundation: www.livingwage.org.uk
Low Pay Commission: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/low-pay-commission
Employment Rights Bill: https://bills.parliament.uk/bills/3737
For Usdaw press releases visit: www.usdaw.org.uk/news and you can follow us on Bluesky @usdawunion.bsky.social and Twitter/X @UsdawUnion