Scottish Sea Farms has announced it will pay above the real living wage to help its employees and their families with the rising cost of living.
The business, which supplies M&S with its Select Farm salmon, has committed to pay a minimum wage of £10.40 per hour, representing a 9% increase year on year for lower-income employees and bringing the company’s entry level salary to £21,632 before overtime, weekend payments, pension contributions and annual bonuses.
The sum is 90p higher than the national living wage set by the UK government and 50p higher than the independently calculated real living wage.
The real living wage is calculated each year based on what people need to live on to help employers pay a fair wage that meets the cost of living. Scottish Sea Farms has been a real living wage accredited employer for almost five years.
“Of course, household incomes are under increasing pressure too due to the rising price of food, fuel and energy, amongst other essentials, said MD Jim Gallagher. “As an employer, it presents a very real challenge: how best to help employees withstand the worst of the hopefully short-lived inflationary hikes, whilst also ensuring any increases in pay rates are affordable longer term.”
The company said costs were rising across the business at “a level never seen before” but felt that “recruiting and retaining good people is key to the economic sustainability” of the organisation.
“We’ve long recognised that safeguarding the long-term viability of our business starts with looking after our people, and these latest enhancements are all part and parcel of our work to become the employer of choice in our communities,” said Tracy Bryant-Shaw, head of HR.
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