We can’t wait another 120 years for a living wage

From the Ritzy cinema in London to Care UK in Doncaster, employee-led campaigns calling for the living wage are on the rise. But with a dearth of policies that would make fair pay a right, it’s not clear politicians are paying attention.

It’s not gone unnoticed that Ed Miliband – who so often speaks of taking on the ‘cost-of-living crisis’ and criticises the Tories for creating a race-to-the-bottom – has stayed relatively quiet on the campaign in his own constituency. It’s worrying that this is threatening to become a characteristic silence on topics he claims to want to address. To reverse this potential trend, Miliband must outline clear solutions to the poverty pay that affects workers across the country.

This week would be a fine time to do so.

It’s Living Wage Week. Launched by the Living Wage Foundation, and supported by a number of trade unions union, this is a week aimed at raising awareness around the living wage (which is now £7.85 and £9.15 in London). But as sustained campaigns in London and Doncaster – where workers could be threatened with dismissal – show the struggles of those living below the poverty line don’t end when the sun sets on Sunday.

In fact, the tireless campaigning of workers’ in London and Doncaster, which have deservedly received some media attention, signify a whole swathe of workers across the country who are underpaid and in desperate need of change.

Last year the Joseph Rowntree Foundation found that for the first time, there were more people in working families living below the poverty line than in workless and retired families. A recent study found that 5.8 million people in employment (22%, up from 147,000 last year) live on less than the living wage.

Yet this isn’t just about figures, which neglect to touch upon the stark reality many people in poverty face. It’s about the word of the moment: inequality. With so many people in work but unable to pay the bills and buy food – evidenced by the increasing numbers of people using food banks – many have no way of escaping the clutches of poverty.

The way that low pay manifests itself also proves that inequality is structural. Alongside it being Living Wage Week, today is equal pay day. This marks the date on our calendars when, women across the country will be working for free until the end of the year. This statement isn’t my feminism turning hyperbolic. Rather this highlights the fact that on average women receive 15% less than men.

So when we’re talking about poverty pay, we must recognise the ways in which low pay tends to affect particular – often silenced – groups in society. As well as women, it’s young workers, part-time employees and so regularly ignored people of colour (there are higher poverty rates amongst ethnic minority groups than among White Britons) that are most likely to be paid less than the living wage. What’s more, this inequality is regional. Northern Ireland, the North-East and Yorkshire and Humber have the highest proportion of people living below the living wage.

Meanwhile, conveniently ignoring these facts Osborne and co. the say the same phrase over again, as if repetition is a panacea for poverty: the economy is recovering. And Tory MP John Redwood’s solution to regional poverty, for so-called “jealous” Northerners to work in London, speaks of such out-of-touch privilege that it doesn’t even deserve a response.

The Tories speak empty and ignorant words, and despite what numbers on a graph might say, the outlook is bleak. So what have the Labour leadership got to offer?

The Labour Party’s current plan is to raise the National Minimum Wage (NMW) to £8 by 2020 (it’s currently at £6.50 an hour if you’re over the age of 21). Although this would boost the NWM from 54% to 58% of median earning, it won’t do much for most workers who are paid below the living wage – particularly when you take into account the likelihood of rising inflation. Even former Labour MP Alan Milburn, who is now chairperson of the Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission, has been outspoken in his call for the Labour Party to be more ambitious in their plans. A hugely positive step in the right direction would be committing to implementing a statutory living wage over the course of the next Parliament.

Without this, and with policies that although well-intentioned don’t go far enough, when the party leadership talk about the cost-of-living crisis their words continue to ring hollow. Not to mention the incongruity of Ed Balls committing to the public sector pay freeze. In this climate, it is little wonder that many people are turning away from conventional politics.

The Labour Party was born out of a belief that a key plank in achieving a just society would be an economic equality. It’s a damning indictment of our society, and the Labour leadership, that nearly 120 year afters it was founded, the Labour Party is struggling to offer real solutions to poverty pay. Miliband must listen to workers’ campaigns and make it so that fair pay is a right, not a privilege, Because he too should recognise that we can’t wait another 120 years for real change to come.