Taking the measure of the ‘national living wage’

http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/jul/09/taking-the-measure-of-the-national-living-wage

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In the harrumphing from employers about the budget’s “national living wage” (Retailers warn of high price, 9 July), it is worth pointing out that some think the chancellor has done absolutely the right thing. It took some courage when my own organisation became the first national care organisation to pay the living wage back in April 2014. We knew it was the right thing to do but also understood that as an employer of 1,500 people it would add to our costs.

Fifteen months on and I am pleased to report that paying the living wage has reaped rewards for our charity in terms of reduced staff turnover, greater staff satisfaction and an even greater commitment to the older people who live with us. My only regret with the budget measure is that it didn’t go further by matching the Living Wage Foundation’s rates of £7.85 an hour nationally and £9.15 in London. Not until the entire care sector rewards its people fairly for the very challenging work they undertake will older people get the excellent support they deserve.Natasha SingarayerChief executive, the Abbeyfield Society

• The chancellor announced a national living wage that will increase to £7.20, graduating to £9 an hour (Report, 9 July). But why exclude those under 25 when the Low Pay Commission already has the most complex systems for graduated wages determining low pay? This surely demonstrates the emergence of new influences in the Resolution Foundation research determining the increase in the minimum wage (or minimum wages) in the UK. The wages of the lower-paid non-unionised workers in social care, hotel and catering and retailing are raised, as long as they are over 25. What about younger low-paid workers?Dr Peter ProwseUniversity of Bradford School of Management

• We’re waiting to see if the budget helps get children’s homes off the breadline. We explained to the chancellor how children’s homes have been taking a hit on all sides so we’ll be looking at the smallprint to see if there are changes that will give equal tax treatment with other care options for providers and practitioners. If not, then the budget’s national living wage will have a significant effect on children’s homes.

We recently surveyed children’s homes providers. Only 17% expressed any confidence in the future, 38% were undecided, 40% were very unsure. We have to get the financing of care on a better foundation. Staffing is the major cost of children’s homes and these costs will rise yet more percentage points. Meanwhile, local authorities are not increasing fees. Corporation tax reductions will have a negligible effect on the 65% of children’s homes providers who have one or two homes and where staffing is a large component.Jonathan StanleyIndependent Children’s Homes Association

• The £9bn cuts to the tax credits system announced by the chancellor could plunge many of the most vulnerable in society into poverty. Tax credits are a significant source of income for many families in the UK, helping them to pay bills, and buy food and other essentials. Removing this vital support, before the impact of any proposed wage increases can be felt, is likely to push many into financial hardship.

Many people who come to us are confused about what welfare benefits and tax credits they may be entitled to, and the planned changes will no doubt add to this concern. Last year, over 900,000 benefits calculations were completed on our website, resulting in over £94m in welfare benefits and tax credits being identified – income that many had been completely unaware of.

It’s more important than ever that people can check their latest benefits entitlements, and understand what additional support might be available through charitable grants and other help. Check for support at www.turn2us.org.uk. 

If you’re an organisation that provides financial help, please do everything you can to let people know that you’re there. It may seem obvious, but we know from the level of unclaimed benefits in the UK that there’s a lot more to do.

While there may be many who benefit from the measures announced in the budget, it is vital that as a compassionate society we address the concerns of those who will not be so lucky. We will continue to work together with charities and other organisations to make all the help available as accessible and straightforward as possible.Simon HopkinsChief executive, Turn2us

• The first question David Cameron was asked in the Election Leaders’ Special Question Time on 30 April was whether there was any truth in the rumour that a Conservative government would make cuts to child tax credits. His response? “No, I don’t want to do that.” David Dimbleby got him to confirm this statement and to agree it was a guarantee. Two months later not only will all child tax credits be cut in real terms by the rate of inflation, they are to be removed entirely for children who happen to have two older siblings. If we allow our government to be elected on the basis of blatant lies, what does that say about the state of our democracy?Martin QuinnTavistock, Devon

• Around half the people in poverty in Scotland live in working households, a worse situation than in the UK as a whole, with tax credits going some way to alleviate this. While more than 500,000 children in Scotland benefit from tax credits, seven in 10 Scottish households who receive them are working households, with 90% of expenditure on tax credits going to households with an income of less than £20,000. It is estimated that a 10% cut in child tax credit will cost Scottish families £150m a year, while a 10% cut in all tax credits would leave households £250m worse off.

The UK government’s cut in tax credits will hit Scotland’s poorest children and families hard, a frightening indication of the potential impact of the proposed £12bn in welfare cuts.Alex OrrEdinburgh

• Who would have guessed that a Tory chancellor would force companies to pay a national living wage. But policing it will be a mug’s game. It will, for instance, attract even more EU migrants. Raising the basic income tax threshold will do the same. Better to admit that a living wage and mass immigration are mutually exclusive. Either curtail immigration, in which case the market will automatically raise unskilled wages, or forget about a living wage.Yugo KovachWinterborne Houghton, Dorset

• A national living wage! Ed Miliband may have lost the election but he clearly won the argument. Brian KeeganPeterborough