Dave Watson's presentation

1. UNISON Scotland
Dave Watson
Head of Policy & Public Affairs
UNISON Scotland
Public Sector Employers
and the Living Wage
Public Sector Leadership:
Anchoring Ontario’s Living Wage Movement – Feb 2018

2. UNISON Scotland
Context
 Since financial crash real wages fallen
 Profits and dividends gone up
 Impact on local economy
 Impact on social security costs
 More than half in work
 Scottish Govt – Fair Work Convention
 UK National Minimum Wage and
‘Living Wage’
 ‘Social Wage’ concept

3. UNISON Scotland
What is the Scottish Living Wage?
Minimum income that households need in order to afford an
acceptable standard of living.
• Calculated by Living Wage Foundation.
• Voluntary – although public procurement
• Scottish Living Wage campaign.
•Harder edge campaigning
• Scottish Living Wage accreditation
•Promotion and accreditation.
•1100+ employers signed up
•Almost all public sector employers

4. UNISON Scotland
Canadian Dollars $12.41 $13.20 $15.40

5. UNISON Scotland
Pubic policy case for the SLW
• Workers get higher wages, improves health and job
motivation.
• Employers. reduces turnover, improves productivity and
attracts better staff through reputational gain
• Community benefits through lower benefit cost, less
stress on the NHS and cash into the local economy.
• Sub-living wage employers cost taxpayer £6bn a year in
in-work benefits alone (IFS) – 500k workers below
• Indirect cost on poverty is around £25bn a year.

6. UNISON Scotland
Boris Johnson
“I believe that paying decent wages reduces staff turnover
and produces a more motivated and productive workforce”.

7. UNISON Scotland
Strategy to promote SLW
• Bargaining
• All the public sector
• Scottish Government Pay Policy
• Councils and NHS Scotland
• Higher and Further Education
• Private sector base
• Encouragement
• Name and shame
• Formal accreditation. Living wage employer
• Scottish Government funding

8. UNISON Scotland
Procurement
• 11bn public spending to leverage SLW
• Procurement Reform Act 2014
• EU procurement rules – limit direct compliance
• Work around:
o Procurement strategy – evaluation – contract
• Statutory procurement guidance
o Fair work – not just Scottish Living Wage
• S52 guidance – ends two-tier workforce

9. UNISON Scotland
Procurement Policy

10. UNISON Scotland
Conclusion
•Wages and growth context
•Good for workers
•Good for employers
•Good for taxpayer
•Good for local economy
•Made good progress in Scotland
• Government policy framework
• Procurement and accreditation

11. UNISON Scotland
Resources
•Scottish Government – statutory guidance on Fair Work
http://www.gov.scot/Publications/2015/10/2086
Scottish Living Wage Campaign
www.scottishlivingwage.org
•UNISON briefings http://www.unison.org.uk/our-
campaigns/unison-campaigns/a-living-wage/home/
•Procurement Guidance http://www.unison-
scotland.org.uk/briefings/b056_BargainingBrief_Extending
LivingWage_July2014.pdf

12. UNISON Scotland
The idea behind a living wage is very simple: that a person should be
paid enough to live decently and to adequately provide for their
family. At its heart is an ethical argument for preventing in-work
poverty and ensuring workers are not exploited through low wages.