SSE plc, parent company of Northern Ireland’s largest gas and electricity supplier, Airtricity, has today become the UK’s biggest officially-accredited Living Wage employer – guaranteeing all employees at least £7.45 an hour.
Nearly 20,000 staff across Great Britain and Northern Ireland will receive at least the Living Wage rate, set at a level which ensures people can cover their basic cost of living including housing, bills, food and work travel.
SSE is the biggest UK company by market capitalisation to introduce The Living Wage and one of only three in the FTSE 100. It is also the first major energy company to sign-up to the Living Wage.
SSE Chief Executive Alistair Phillips-Davies said: “SSE is proud to become one of the first big companies to pay its employees the Living Wage.
“With a workforce of over 20,000, this demonstrates that we value the people who work for SSE very highly and we’re willing to pay them at a level which shows them we mean it.
“It also shows that SSE is a company which is serious about doing the right thing. It is a matter of basic fairness that people should get a wage which is enough to cover their living expenses and SSE believes in being fair.”
SSE is the largest generator of electricity from renewable sources in Northern Ireland and the second largest energy provider in Northern Ireland with over 330,000 gas and electricity customers.
In total, 148 employees in Northern Ireland, Scotland and England have received a wage increase, averaging around £1000, as a result of the decision to become a Living Wage employer. The increase has been backdated to April.
SSE will also ensure that its supply chain, worth over £2bn a year, will pay employees the Living Wage. That means that everyone directly or indirectly employed by SSE will receive the rate. This could see thousands more people benefit from the Living Wage. This will come into effect from April 2014.
Rhys Moore, Director of The Living Wage Foundation said: “The Living Wage Foundation is delighted that today SSE has signed up to become a Living Wage Employer. The success of the Living Wage campaign rests on this kind of leadership.
“Today’s announcement is a real milestone in the history of the Living Wage movement. We now have the first energy supplier, the first UK utility and the first company in the top third of the FTSE 100 to become an accredited Living Wage employer. The history of the Living Wage campaign teaches us that others will follow this lead.
“There are now close to 400 accredited Living Wage Employers across the UK, up from 70 this time last year. SSE’s accreditation is an example to other major employers to do the right thing and take a lead on the Living Wage.”
Commenting on the Living Wage, Nina McKay, an SSE employee at Airtricity Gas NI, said: “It is nice to be recognised and nice to get that little bit extra. The increase I have received has gone towards helping with my own expenditure, on various household items such as food bills, utility bills, house and car insurance, which is a great help for me.”