Real living wage increases early to help workers through cost-of-living crisis

The Living Wage Foundation, which sets rates that employers can voluntarily opt into, said the wage will go up by a record 10.1% - to £10.90 across the UK and £11.95 in London.

It represents the biggest rise in the charity’s ten-year history and is higher than the government-set National Living Wage, which is £9.50 an hour for adults.

The rise, which would usually be revealed in November, will mean that around 390,000 employees of businesses which signed up to the scheme will see their salaries go up.

Inflation in the UK rose to above 10% in July - the highest rate for nearly 40 years. Though it dipped to 9.9% in August, it is set to rise further in October as energy bills rise, coupled with the rising cost of fuel and food.

Figures from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) said that wage growth across the UK has failed to keep up with the higher cost of living.

Annual growth in regular pay was 5.5% in the three months to June – significantly lower than the rate of inflation.

The Real Living Wage foundation are paid by more than 11,000 employers – including Lush, Aviva, Nationwide, Everton FC and Ikea - who have signed up to the scheme.

The foundation said that the number of real living wage employers had more than doubled in the past two years, with new names including the Royal Albert Hall, Aston University, and the ExCel Centre.

Katherine Chapman, director of the Living Wage Foundation, said millions are facing an awful “heat or eat” choice this winter.

"Today’s new rates will provide hundreds of thousands of workers and their families with greater security and stability during these incredibly difficult times."

“We are facing unprecedented challenges with the cost-of-living crisis, but businesses continue to step up and support workers by signing up to the Living Wage in record numbers.

“We know that the Living Wage is good for employers as well as workers, that’s why the real Living Wage must continue to be at the heart of solutions to tackle the cost-of-living crisis.”

The general secretary of the Unison union, Christina McAnea, called on the government to introduce an increase to the compulsory national minimum wage as lower-paid workers are “still crying out for help”, she told the BBC.