The beginnings of a local minimum wage movement

The article in last month’s Observer by Gavin Kelly describing the grassroots movement in Seatac, USA, that set a minimum wage of $15 an hour to abolish in-work poverty is an inspiration to everyone involved in the Living Wage campaign in the UK.  In an era of corporate dominance it shows the power that lies within communities to take control of their own destinies.

However, the noble achievements of the campaigners in Seatac and other towns and cities in the US does raise significant questions about the over-centralised system of government here and wider questions of democracy more generally. The fundamental question is, if towns and cities in the USA have the power to set their own higher minimum wage rates, should we be afforded the same power here?

The answer to this question I believe is a resounding YES.  People retain an interest and passion for local politics but restrictions placed on local government in the last 30 years has seen average turnout in local elections reduce from 43% in 1978 to just 31% in 2013.

My belief is to reverse this growing democratic deficit people need to be offered genuine choice in their communities, like voting for a party or parties who would offer the opportunity to implement a higher minimum wage rate at the current living wage level locally. In layman’s terms people need a little more to be able to vote for.

As a local politician I was immensely proud when Preston council became the first officially accredited Living Wage employer in the north of England in 2012.  Following our lead we now have a number of major employers located in Preston like Lancashire council, Preston College, Preston Bus and Community Gateway Association who will join us in doing the same.  This will benefit thousands of people who will see a significant rise in take home pay.

We want to take the lead again by applying to government under the sustainable communities act to give local authorities the power to set their own higher minimum wages as they have done in Seatac.  Such a proposal is ideal for the act because a community is not sustainable in social and economic terms if a significant proportion of its workforce is trapped in poverty pay and dependent on state subsidised benefits. The proposal will also look to ensure that some of the savings to the treasury in benefits by raising pay could be retained locally to support small businesses with the costs of implementing such a change.

I do strongly conform to the belief that the national minimum wage of £6.31 should be raised to the living wage level of £7.65 per hour.  France’s statutory minimum is higher than this level and Australia has a comparable minimum wage rate of over £10 per hour.  With the reality being that it is unlikely the statutory minimum will be raised to the living wage level in the near future we must campaign to allow communities to be allowed to take this decision for themselves and take the exciting ideas around living wage zones further by allowing everyone within a local authority area to receive it.

The beauty of the sustainable communities act legislation is when councils apply for powers under it the secretary of state cannot simply say no but will need to enter into a negotiation process with authorities who have made the proposal.  We hope to gain support for this from the growing number of councils paying the Living Wage across the country.

The courage of the people of Seatac in beginning a movement across the US against low pay helps take the already significant achievements of the Living Wage movement in the UK a step further by demanding the same rights here.  Politicians in Westminster should watch this space closely and not ignore the growing number of voices demanding the power to implement local solutions to bring an end to poverty pay.