Aileen Campbell, SNP MSP for South of Scotland, has warmly welcomed the announcement by the Scottish Government that from August this year, no member of its staff will earn less that £7 an hour.  The commitment to pay a ‘living minimum wage’ to its staff came from Communities Minister Alex Neil during a debate in the Parliament on the Scottish Government’s anti-poverty strategy. 

The Minister told the Chamber that a living wage brings benefits to employees and employers, as employers can expect to benefit from increases in productivity, greater staff loyalty and motivation, easier recruitment and retention, reduced absenteeism and higher-quality staff, while employees earn enough to ensure they do not slip into ‘working poverty’.

Commenting, Aileen Campbell MSP said: 

“I warmly welcome the Scottish Government’s commitment to pay all its staff a ‘living wage’ of at least £7 per hour from August this year. 

“It is simply wrong that people who are in employment can still end up living in poverty.  As the Minister said during the debate in the Scottish Parliament, society as a whole benefits when people are lifted out of poverty and we narrow the gap between rich and poor. 

“The Scottish Government is doing what it can with the powers it has, and I believe that the need to make radical progress to tackle the root causes of poverty is one of the most compelling reasons for taking Scotland forward to independence.”