Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland (CHSS) marked Living Wage Week 2017 (November 5-11) by becoming accredited as a Living Wage employer.

The Scottish Government’s Minister for Public Health and Sport, Aileen Campbell, visited Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland, (CHSS) headquarters in Edinburgh to celebrate this milestone moment on Thursday, November 9.
During her visit, Ms Campbell met CHSS staff, who shared their plans to proudly display their Living Wage employer mark in each of their community hubs and retail units across Scotland.

The Living Wage, which this week increased to £8.75 from £8.45 per hour, will be extended to all 260 employees of CHSS by May 2018. This is significantly higher than the statutory minimum for over 25s of £7.50 per hour introduced in April 2017.

The Living Wage seeks to meet the cost of living in Scotland, including the cost of accommodation, food and accounting for factors such as inflation.

Minister for Public Health and Sport, Aileen Campbell said:

“This is great news and will ensure staff directly employed by CHSS – alongside all contracted staff – have the security of being paid at least the real Living Wage.

“The Scottish Government is encouraging more organisations to recognise the benefits of paying the real Living Wage, to help ensure that basic wages continue to meet the cost of living.”

Jane-Claire Judson, CHSS Chief Executive, said:

“For CHSS, being a Living Wage employer is part of our philosophy and is about doing the right thing for our people. Offering the Living Wage above the minimum wage is good for our workforce and it is great for our organisational health particularly in retaining employees. But just as importantly, it’s a symbol of the type of charity we exist to be and our aspirations to be responsible in all that we do in order to make a difference to our people lives. We’ve been delivering the living wage as an employer for years and it’s great to be officially recognised this way.”

Peter Kelly, Director of the Poverty Alliance said:

“I congratulate Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland on their accreditation as a Living Wage Employer. They join a growing movement of over 1000 accredited employers in Scotland. With the support of all accredited employers like CHSS, we aim to further grow the number of people our Initiative has helped to receive the real Living Wage. We encourage more employers to join us, to reinforce that Living Wage accreditation is the mark of a responsible employer.”