Councils urged to follow Oldham lead on pay

MORE councils are being urged to follow Oldham’s example and increase the wages of their lowest-paid workers.

Around 2,800 Oldham Council staff will get a boost in their pay packets from April when Oldham Council begins paying the “living wage” — the amount needed to cover the basic cost of living.

Oldham currently pays the local living wage of £7.24 an hour - not the national adult minimum wage of £6.31.

From the new tax year it will pay the national living wage — currently £7.65 outside London.

The TUC is calling on more councils to set an example to other employers by paying the living wage, and is urging councils to award contracts only to private firms that pay the national living wage.

In Oldham, 49.5 per cent of female part-time workers earn less than the living wage. The figure is the eighth-worst of 30 local authority areas in the North-West.

Oldham Council is encouraging companies to sign up to its Fair Employment Charter, which includes pledging to pay a living wage.