Transport for Wales Celebrates Commitment to Real Living Wage

Transport for Wales has today announced its accreditation as a Living Wage Employer.

The commitment will see everyone working at Transport for Wales receive a minimum hourly wage of £9.30. This is significantly higher than the UK government minimum for over 25s, which currently stands at £8.21 per hour.

Wales has one of the highest proportions of non-Living Wage jobs in the UK (24%), with around 268,000 jobs paying less than the real Living Wage. However, Transport for Wales has committed to pay the real Living Wage and deliver a fair day’s pay for a hard day’s work.

As a not-for-profit company wholly owned by the Welsh Government, TfW aims to deliver public investment with a social purpose that is fully aligned with Welsh Government Policy and brings benefits to the people of Wales, including their staff.

TfW has also developed a social partnership involving recognition of all relevant trade unions in the sectors that they operate in, creating a positive and progressive culture for staff and their representatives.

In the next few weeks TfW will also publish their Sustainability Development Plan where there are commitments to also paying their sub-contractors the Living Wage and suppliers will only be selected if they agree to pay their team members with the Living Wage.

Ken Skates, Minister for Economy and Transport, said:

“The Welsh Government committed to take forward the Fair Work Commission and the steps we need to take to make Wales a Fair Work nation, with payment of the real living wage in all companies receiving public funds as an early step. The number of companies implementing the living wage continues to grow and I’m pleased to see Transport for Wales becoming one of them.”

James Price, Transport for Wales CEO said:

“We are pleased to announce that Transport for Wales is now formally recognised as a Living Wage Employer. As we progress and evolve as an organisation, our staff will be essential to our success and we want all our staff to feel valued and have fulfilling careers.

“We are a modern organisation with a social purpose and as well as this announcement we have also committed to supporting community involvement through offering our staff up to three days paid leave to volunteer in their local community.”

Katherine Chapman, Director, Living Wage Foundation said:

“We’re delighted that Transport for Wales has joined the movement of over 5,500 responsible employers across the UK who voluntarily commit to go further than the government minimum to make sure all their staff earn enough to live on.

“They join thousands of small businesses, as well as household names such as IKEA, Heathrow Airport, Barclays, Chelsea and Everton Football Clubs and many more. These businesses recognise that paying the real Living Wage is the mark of a responsible employer and they, like Transport for Wales, believe that a hard day’s work deserves a fair day’s pay.”