Midlands law firm commits to being a living wage employer

Award-winning Midlands regional law firm Higgs LLP has further demonstrated its commitment to the wellbeing of its employees by being accredited as a Living Wage Employer.

The firm will offer an independently calculated minimum hourly wage of £10.90, which exceeds the government’s minimum wage which is currently set at £9.50 for people aged over 23 and at decreasing values for those under that age threshold.

Higgs LLP is following in the footsteps of around 12,000 businesses across the UK – including Barclays, Burberry and KPMG - to have pledged to voluntarily go further than the government’s minimum wage requirements and offer the hourly figure set by the Living Wage Foundation.

Sophie Wardell, HR director at Higgs LLP which was recently crowned Birmingham Law Society’s Regional Firm of the Year, said: “The well-documented rising cost of living has placed huge financial pressures on households across the UK and the Living Wage Foundation has done fantastic work highlighting the issues many individuals are facing.

“Around one in five workers in the West Midlands are earning less than the Real Living Wage and these are unprecedented times of financial difficulty. We are fully committed to looking after our people. Taking the decision to adopt the Real Living Wage will have a significant impact on our employees who will benefit and forms part of a wider package of measures we have introduced over the last 12 months.”

All employees at Higgs LLP have previously received a one-off £500 payment to help them navigate their way through the cost of living crisis while the ‘Higgs Hardship Fund’ has been introduced to provide financial support to staff on a case-by-case basis.

In addition, financial education workshops have been available to Higgs employees after the firm linked up with Better With Money to deliver money-saving advice.

Helena Flavell, HR business partner added: “We’ve always placed a very strong emphasis on creating the right workplace culture for everyone, regardless of their role or the work they carry out. We want to invest in our people and help them grow and develop and this initiative is another example of our commitment to achieving that.”

By Mark Adair – Correspondent, Bdaily

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