The London Living Wage: A Working Guide for Trade Unionists

The campaign for a living wage for London's low paid workforce has become increasingly high profile and successful.

The trade union movement, community organisations, academia and the Mayor of London have joined forces to map the scale of low pay in the capital and to identify and articulate the needs of the quarter of London's workforce that suffers from low pay, poor employment practices and all too often lacks a voice in this city.

Increasingly, this progressive alliance has begun to secure victories for workers. From Canary Wharf to the City, from universities to hospitals, new deals providing living wages, pensions, holiday and sick pay have been negotiated for cleaners and other low paid workers. And trade union organisation has grown as a result.

The industrial landscape of London is complex and those areas of low paid work pose serious challenges as well as opportunities for unions looking to organize and win living wage agreements for workers. Many low paid workers are employed by businesses in complex supply chains of multitiered sub-contracts, often providing services to public sector organisations.

For this reason, a range of strategies is necessary to address low pay and poor employment practices. Union organisation in the workplace is integral to this. But other means are important too. Lobbying the large employers that sub-contract the services is one element and is particularly potent in the context of 'corporate social responsibility'. Addressing the nature of public sector procurement is another area, something that the Mayor of London has looked at through the contracts let by the Greater London Authority group.

This booklet provides trade unions with information necessary to conduct successful campaigns and negotiations around the concept of the London Living Wage:

Download T he London Living Wage: A Working Guide for Trade Unionists (PDF)

Briefing document (400 words) issued 8 Oct 2007