Santander UK has today announced that it has been accredited as a Living Wage business, formalising the bank's previous commitment to pay all staff working in its branches, offices and banking centres the UK Living Wage.
The accreditation sees Santander join a growing number of major UK employers in committing to pay all employees, both direct and indirect, a salary that reflects the real cost of living in the UK. The bank was also announced last week as one of the UK's best employers, placed in 'The Sunday Times 25 Best Big Companies to Work For' 2015 awards.
Simon Lloyd, Chief People Officer & General Counsel, said:
As one of the UK's biggest companies we are concerned not only about our own employees but also people working at Santander sites for our suppliers.
Having moved all our direct employees to the UK Living Wage in 2013 and subsequently the London Living Wage, we are delighted to extend this commitment to indirect employees. We look forward to working closely with the Living Wage Foundation to help further this initiative.
Companies choose to pay the Living Wage on a voluntary basis and employees receive a minimum hourly wage of £7.85, which is set independently, and is significantly higher than the national minimum wage of £6.50.
Santander has agreed an implementation plan with the Foundation which will see all third-party contractors and suppliers paying their staff the Living Wage and London Living by 2017, ultimately benefitting some 1,600 people. This will be managed on an on-going basis as and when contracts come up for renewal and covers cleaning, security, reception, catering and mailroom suppliers. The first contract to move to Living Wage commenced on 1 March 2015 and covers cleaning staff for the bank's retail and corporate banking sites.
Rhys Moore, Director at the Living Wage Foundation, said:
We are delighted that Santander has extended its commitment to the Living Wage movement as an accredited Living Wage employer for both direct and indirect employees. With over 900 branches and business centres in key cities and towns, Santander's accreditation means that the Living Wage is now becoming a reality on high streets across the country.
Santander joins over 1,200 other responsible organisations across the UK who recognise that paying the Living Wage makes good business sense as well as being the right thing to do.
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For More Information
Miles Freeman
Citigate Dewe Rogerson
020 7282 1064
Miles.Freeman@citigatedr.co.uk
Twitter: @santanderuk
Notes to editors:
About the Living Wage Foundation
The Living Wage is an hourly rate set independently and updated annually. The Living Wage is calculated according to the basic cost of living in the UK. Employers choose to pay the Living Wage on a voluntary basis. The Living Wage enjoys cross party support, with public backing from the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition.
The London Living Wage is currently £9.15 per hour. This figure is set annually by the Greater London Authority and covers all boroughs in Greater London. The UK Living Wage for outside of London is currently £7.85 per hour. This figure is set annually by the Centre for Research in Social Policy at Loughborough University.
The Living Wage Foundation recognises and celebrates the leadership shown by Living Wage employers across the UK. There are currently over 1100 accredited employers. We are an initiative of Citizens UK. We believe that work should be the surest way out of poverty.
About Santander
Santander UK is a leading financial services provider in the UK and offers a wide range of personal and commercial financial products and services. As at 31 December 2014, Santander UK serves more than 14 million active customers with c. 20,000 employees and operates through 921 branches and 66 regional Corporate Business Centres. Santander UK is subject to the full supervision of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) in the UK. Santander UK plc customers are protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) in the UK.
Banco Santander (SAN.MC, STD.N, BNC.LN) is a retail and commercial bank, based in Spain, with a presence in 10 main markets. Santander is the largest bank in the euro zone by market capitalization. Founded in 1857, Santander had EUR 1.43 trillion in managed funds, 12,950 branches - more than any other international bank - and 185,400 employees at the close of 2014. It is the largest financial group in Spain and Latin America. It also has significant positions in the United Kingdom, Portugal, Germany, Poland and the northeast United States. In 2014 Santander made an attributable profit of EUR 5,816 million, 39% more than the previous year.