Over 460,000 workers will get a pay rise of 10% today, thanks to a rise to the Real Living Wage.
It is increasing to £12 an hour across the UK and £13.15 an hour in London, a rise of £1.10 and £1.20 respectively.
It is a voluntary rate of pay, which employers can pay their staff. In the UK, 14,000 employers including Ikea, Aviva, and Lush have signed up to it.
The real living wage is different to the National Minimum Wage, for workers that are of school age or over, and the Living Wage, for those aged 23 and over.
Both the National Minimum Wage, which is currently set at £7.49 for 18 to 20-year olds and £10.18 for 21 and 22-year olds, and the Living Wage, which is £10.42 for those aged 23 and over, are mandatory and employers must pay at least these rates to their employers.
A full-time worker earning the new rate of the Real Living Wage, would earn £3,081 a year more than someone on the National Minimum Wage. In London, the employee earning the Real Living Wage would earn £5,323.50 more a year.
The Real Living Wage is independently calculated by the Living Wage Foundation looking at rising living costs and it applies to all workers aged 18 and over, if their employer signs up to the scheme.
The rise today reflects the current economic situation, the Living Wage Foundation said. It said that although inflation was falling, many people were still struggling financially.
Its research showed that 60% of those that earn under the Real Living Wage have visited a food bank in the last year, 43% regularly use one, and 39% are regularly skipping meals.
‘Low paid workers continue to struggle’
Katherine Chapman, Living Wage Foundation director, said: “As inflation eases, we cannot forget that low paid workers remain at the sharp end of the cost-of-living crisis.
“Low paid workers continue to struggle with stubbornly high prices because they spend a larger share of their budget on food and energy. These new real Living Wage rates are a lifeline for the 460,000 workers who will get a pay rise .
“The real Living Wage has never been more important and we encourage those who can to join the 14,000 Living Wage employers across the UK who are committed to always pay a wage that covers the cost of living.”
