Living Wage

Cambridge Living Wage

Following the Vice Chancellor’s speech of 1 October 2018, the University has taken the decision to introduce a new minimum rate of pay for all directly contracted staff in order to reflect that the higher cost living associated with the Cambridge area is disproportionately felt by those at the lower end of the pay scale.

A Cambridge Living Wage (CLW) will be effective from 1 August 2019 and will apply to all directly contracted staff, workers on assignment through the Temporary Employment Service (TES), and workers paid through the University Payments System (UPS).

The CLW is set at £10 per hour or equivalent (equal to a full time salary of £19,071 based on a 36.5 hour working week), and will be paid as a supplement each pay period for the difference between an employees current basic hourly rate and the Cambridge Living Wage. The supplement will cease to be paid once an employees base salary is at or exceeds £10 per hour (currently spine point 22).

The Cambridge Living Wage rate will be reviewed periodically as required. Any subsequent increase would require approval by the relevant University committees.

Real Living Wage

Following a formal application to the Living Wage Foundation, the University of Cambridge has been accredited as a Living Wage Employer. This ensures that wages for University staff and those of contractors who regularly work on University premises will never be lower than the independent benchmark set by the Living Wage Foundation.

Prior to being formally accredited as Living Wage employer, the University of Cambridge voluntarily paid the RLW to direct employees since 1^st August 2014.

The Real Living Wage (RLW) is an hourly rate of pay set independently by the Living Wage Foundation (LWF) and updated annually in November each year. The rate is calculated annually by the Resolution Foundation and overseen by the Living Wage Commission, and is based on the best available evidence about living standards in London and the UK (https://www.livingwage.org.uk/calculation). The RLW was previously known as the Voluntary Living Wage (VLF)

The Living Wage Foundation has more detail on the current and historical RLW rates.

For any queries on the Cambridge Living Wage (CLW), or the RLW accreditation project please contact the Reward team (CAMbens@admin.cam.ac.uk)

Explaining UK and Cambridge Living Wage rates