We Support Ed Miliband's Living Wage Campaign

Today we pledge to support Labour leadership candidate Ed Miliband's Living Wage Campaign.

Ed Miliband recently wrote to the leading businesses in the country urging support for a Living Wage. Today we add our voice to that call. To coincide with this national push, The Jools Payne Partnership is encouraging like-minded small business owners to come forward in support of Ed's campaign.

Director Jools Payne says: “We’re writing to local businesses in our home town of Oswestry from today to urge them to join us in supporting an end to poverty pay. The Minimum Wage was a great New Labour achievement but I believe businesses in the area, across Shropshire and beyond should be doing more than the current legal minimum.

“Small businesses like ours are operating against the most difficult economic backdrop in decades. I constantly hear the mantra ‘Cash is King’. Sadly, I think many small business owners interpret this as ‘pay people as little as you can get away with’. Morally, that’s just not right.

“There is a sound business case for paying a Living Wage. It is good not only for the employee but for the employer too. It rightfully values the individual and this in turn encourages better productivity, motivation, loyalty and results.

I believe paying a Living Wage will also benefit the local economy in Shropshire by stimulating local demand. We are a low wage economy here, below the national average, and if Shropshire is to thrive under the proposed LEP that needs to change.

“Big businesses like KPMG and Barclays are already moving toward a Living Wage, businesses in Shropshire large, medium and small should join them.”