Brent Council has become the first local authority in the country to incentivise local companies to pay staff the living wage.
Businesses in the borough will be offered business rates discounts if they agree to pay the living wage in a bid to improve living standards among low paid workers. They will get up to £5,000 off business rates in return for signing-up as living wage accredited employers from April this year, after Brent Council agreed the policy on Monday (January 26).
Councillor Roxanne Mashari, member for employment and skills at Brent, said: "We are committed to championing the living wage and tackling the root causes of poverty in our borough. We know that paying the living wage makes good business sense as it incentivises staff and helps to recruit and retain the best people, whilst reducing absenteeism."
The living wage is not to be confused with the minimum wage, which is currently set at £6.50 for adults and £5.13 for 18-21-year-olds. It takes into account the fact that living costs vary in different parts of the country and takes this into account.
The London Living Wage is currently £9.15 per hour , and it is estimated that 30 per cent of people living in Brent earn less than the living wage . The new initiative means some of the poorest paid people working in the borough could get a £2.50 per hour pay rise.
Representatives from existing London Living Wage employers in the borough, including medical communications agency Synergy Vision, which is about to become the first accredited small business in the borough, were joined by Brent councillors and representatives from the Living Wage Foundation and Citizens UK to celebrate the decision at a special meeting in Willesden Green on Monday.
