The Living Wage Foundation is pleased to announce that the University of Oxford has accredited as a Living Wage employer.
The University of Oxford has committed to ensure everyone working for the University, regardless of whether they are permanent employees or third-party contractors; receives, as a minimum, the Living Wage of £7.85 per hour, compared to the national minimum wage of £6.50. The University of Oxford currently pays all of its directly employed staff the Living Wage or above. However, the University is taking a 'phased accreditation' route, which means that the University is making a commitment to pay the Living Wage rate of pay in the next two years to the staff of contractors and sub-contractors who work regularly on University premises.
The University has been joined in its announcement by Wadham College, which has also accredited as a Living Wage employer today, becoming the latest Oxford College to do so.
The Living Wage is an hourly rate set independently and updated annually. The Living Wage is calculated according to the basic cost of living using the 'Minimum Income Standard' for the UK. Decisions about what to include in this standard are set by the public; it is a social consensus about what people need to make ends meet.
The Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Personnel and Equality, Dr Stephen Goss, said:
I am very pleased that the University is taking this step. It guarantees the Living Wage to all our employees and will ensure that, as we revise or set up new agreements, the staff of contractors who work regularly on our premises also receive the Living Wage. Today's announcement represents the culmination of several years of constructive working with students who, with the support of OUSU, have been campaigning for this important change.
Employers choose to pay the Living Wage on a voluntary basis and the Living Wage enjoys broad cross party support.
Living Wage Foundation Director, Rhys Moore said:
We are delighted to welcome the University of Oxford to the Living Wage movement as an accredited employer. The University joins a list of iconic British organisations that recognise the Living Wage as the right thing to do for business and for the benefit of the communities they work in. The higher education sector is a huge employer across the country, and the leadership shown by the University of Oxford, and several of the Oxford colleges, will raise awareness and interest in the Living Wage. The best employers are voluntarily signing up to pay the Living Wage now.The Living Wage is a robust calculation that reflects the real cost of living, rewarding a hard day's work with a fair day's pay.
ENDS
Media Contact
Living Wage:
Gillian Owen, 07876 246 150, gillian.owen@citizensuk.org.uk
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