Member Article

1 in 4 jobs in Carlisle now pay less than the living wage

There has been a big increase in the proportion of low paid jobs in Carlisle over the last year. One in four jobs in the Carlisle constituency now pay below the living wage, according to the TUC.

The figures emerge on the day local politicians and fair pay campaigners meet to discuss low pay across Cumbria.

TUC analysis of official figures from the House of Commons Library shows that on average one in five jobs nationally pays under the living wage - currently set at £9.15 in London and £7.85 across the rest of the UK - but in some parliamentary constituencies many more people working there earn less than this.

The Carlisle constituency has 25% of workers paid below the living wage which is a jump from 18% in the constituency the previous year.

Northern TUC Regional Secretary Beth Farhat said: “People going out to work shouldn’t be paid poverty wages and the living wage is a recognised standard of what someone needs to be paid to live and not just exist.

“Not only is it worrying for the individuals that one in four of Carlisle’s workers are paid below the living wage, it’s bad news for the local economy, too.

“People need to have money in their pocket to boost local shops and businesses but instead many are really struggling and acquiring debt - despite bringing home a wage.

“The fact that the proportion of Carlisle’s workers paid below the living wage has increased so much in the last year suggests that this recovery is not being shared with many working people around here.

“ It’s good that Carlisle City Council pays the living wage but we need government to act.

“As economic inequality translates almost directly into health inequality, the impact of low pay is not just felt in numbers – it is matched by the often devastating personal costs of in-work poverty and mental and physical ill-health.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Sophia Taha .