Employee-owned business accredited as Real Living Wage employer

The Homebuilding Centre Limited, the employee-owned business that operates the Swindon-based National Self Build & Renovation Centre has been accredited as a Living Wage Employer.

The firm’s Living Wage commitment will see everyone working at the NSBRC receive a minimum hourly wage of £9 – significantly higher than the government minimum for over 25s, which currently stands at £7.83 per hour.

In the South West over a fifth of all jobs (21 percent) pay less than the real Living Wage – affecting around 463,000 employees.

The Real Living Wage is the only rate calculated according to the costs of living. It provides a voluntary benchmark for employers that wish to ensure their staff earn a wage they can live on, not just the government minimum.

Since 2011 the Living Wage movement has delivered a pay rise to over 160,000 people and put over £800m extra into the pockets of low paid workers.

Harvey Fremlin, managing director, said: “As a business that is owned and run by its employees we felt that committing to pay the voluntary Real Living Wage as a minimum was the right thing to do. Our vision is to be an outstanding business to both work for and with, and we feel this accreditation is another step on that journey.

“We are a relatively modest, but successful business and we operate with positive, empowering principles and this commitment has seen several of our team, along with a small number of contractors, benefit from taking home a higher wage”.

Tess Lanning, director of the Living Wage Foundation said: “We’re delighted that The Homebuilding Centre has joined the movement of over 4,700 responsible employers across the UK who voluntarily commit to go further than the government minimum to make sure all their staff earn enough to live on.

“They join thousands of small businesses, as well as household names such as IKEA, Heathrow Airport, Barclays, Chelsea and Everton Football Clubs and many more.

“These businesses recognise that paying the Real Living Wage is the mark of a responsible employer and they, like Harvey and the NSBRC team, believe that a hard day’s work deserves a fair day’s pay.”