Transition Dundee has become accredited as a Living Wage employer. The Living Wage commitment will see everyone working at Transition Dundee receive a minimum hourly wage of £10.90 per hour. This rate is significantly higher than the government minimum for over 23s, which currently stands at £10.42 per hour.
Transition Dundee is a community-led social enterprise which aims to make Dundee a more sustainable, healthier and happier place to live through various climate focussed projects. Transition Dundee joins over 100 accredited Living Wage employers in Dundee City who are working to ensure the local community and economy enjoys the benefits of the real Living Wage.
In 2019, Dundee became the first place in the UK to achieve recognition for their ambitious plan to become a Living Wage City, a place-based approach to driving uptake of the real Living Wage by local businesses. This ambition is strengthened by Transition Dundee’s commitment to the real Living Wage.
In Scotland, 91% of all jobs pay at least the real Living Wage, this is higher than any other UK nation. Despite this, nearly 1 in 10 jobs still pay less than the real Living Wage, this equates to 221,000 jobs.
The real Living Wage is the only UK wage rate calculated according to the costs of living. Employers choose to pay the real Living Wage on a voluntary basis, recognising the value of their workers and ensuring that a hard day’s work receives a fair day’s pay.
Since 2011 the Living Wage movement has delivered a pay rise to over 60,000 people in Scotland and put over £370 million extra into the pockets of low paid Scottish workers.
Lynsey Penny, Managing Director, Transition Dundee said:
“We are delighted to gain Living Wage accreditation and to really embed this in our employment culture going forward – it is simply the right thing to do and in line with the Transition Movements vision for a more sustainable, fair future for everyone.
“We hope that our accreditation will encourage many more employers in the city and country to pay at least the Living Wage and help us all work towards this better future, together.”
Speaking on behalf of Dundee Living Wage Action Group, Dundee City Council City Development convener Cllr Mark Flynn said:
“I am delighted to welcome Transition Dundee to the Dundee Living Wage family. I recently visited them at The Wardrobe and saw first-hand what a tremendous amount of work they do for the local community and city. Their aims to make Dundee a more sustainable, healthier and happier city are ones we can all get behind.
Paying the Living Wage goes hand in hand with that, so I am pleased they have committed to this higher rate of pay. By making that Living Wage commitment, it helps our local economy but also makes employees feel more valued whilst offering more security and stability.”
Christine McCaig, Living Wage Scotland Projects Coordinator said:
“We are delighted to welcome Transition Dundee to our network of over 3,000 Scottish employers who together want to go further than the government minimum. Our growing network in Dundee includes a range of employers from Abertay University to V&A Dundee.
“Employers like Transition Dundee are helping to set the standard for employers in Scotland by making sure that workers have what they need to get by, and we hope to see many more employers following their example.”