What is a living wage?

	Introduction
	Why is the minimum wage not enough?
	What is a Living Wage?
	How are the churches responding?
	What can I do?

The idea of a living wage is based on a simple principle:

Anyone working full-time should have an income they can live off.

It is defined as the minimum level of pay and conditions that enable workers to have an adequate standard of living.

Calculations have shown that these standards cannot be met with the current minimum wage.

How is Living Wage calculated?

Currently the Government defines the line between an acceptable and unacceptable standard of living in terms of having an income less than 60 per cent of median income. Those who fall below this income level are considered to be poor. Measuring poverty in this way has been criticised for being arbitrary and for failing to convey any sense of what it means to live below the line, or whether living just above the line guarantees you a good quality life.

Recent research by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation calculated the amount of money required for a 'socially acceptable standard of living' . This is known as the Minimum Income Standard (MIS). The report defines MIS in the following way:

A minimum standard of living in Britain today includes, but is more than just, food, clothes and shelter. It is about having what you need in order to have the opportunities and choices necessary to participate in society.

According to the report, all households should be able to afford food, clothes, accommodation, utilities, fuel, household goods, personal goods and services, transport and social and cultural activities.

To afford these a couple with children should earn at least £370/week and a pensioner £201/week . A single person working full time would need to earn at least £6.88 an hour. This is £1.15 more than the minimum wage.