My Column

14 Jan 2013

  • Date: Monday 14th January 2013

Recent reports on the cost of working made pretty glum reading last week.

 

The number crunchers at Santander reckon the average Scot spends almost two grand every year on job related costs.

 

I imagine it can't have been the most encouraging statistic for job seekers, a reminder that they’d never see a sizeable chunk of their future salaries.

 

For those in work, the figure shouldn't be surprising - after all they're the ones spending the cash.

 

But I bet it did come as a bit of a shock. I'd be amazed if the average worker manages to keep an accurate tally of exactly how much they spend in a typical day.

 

Lots of us count up the really practical stuff.  Petrol or bus fares. Childcare. The things that put a real dent in your wages.

 

But it's easy to forget the so-called little things that mount up before you know it.

 

Think about it – a coffee here, a biscuit there...oh and one for the colleague who sits beside you. A new pen when your other one runs out.

 

Something nice for lunch. A quick work call on your personal mobile. You might get a new suit so you go in looking smart, or some practical new shoes.

 

By the end of the year the average Scot has just blinked and spent £1,966.

 

I think the figure might actually make some people look a bit closer at their expenditure, consider what they do and don't need - maybe even become that bit savvier with their cash.

 

It's funny because we so often talk about the cost of living, but the cost of working has swiftly caught up as a big concern.

 

It's a sad day when we are using phrases like "in-work poverty" but that seems to be the reality of it these days.

 

We focus so much on unemployment - as we should - but last week underemployment was the issue of the day with one expert warning Scotland had a real problem.

 

Businesses have been forced to make spending cuts and for many workers this has meant being reduced to part-time hours or getting less opportunities for overtime.

 

They may still be in a job but people who live pay packet to pay packet face enormous financial pressures when this happens.

 

Citizens Advice Scotland rightfully pointed out that these folk don't show up in unemployment figures but we mustn't forget that they are still hit hard.

 

Then there's the issue of wages themselves. We have a minimum wage to try and ensure people can make ends meet but even that's under fire now.

 

Critics say the minimum £6.19 an hour is not nearly enough to survive on.

 

The Living Wage Foundation is shouting loudest about it - it actively encourages employers to pay a minimum of £7.45 an hour which is believed to be the real basic cost of living.

 

It's doing well in its campaign and I reckon that’s largely to do with the savvy way in which it makes its argument.

 

The Foundation throws statistics at employers to show them that implementing a living wage makes good business sense.

 

Paying a decent wage impacts on morale, recruitment and retention - cornerstones of a successful business.

 

Companies that opt in to the voluntary scheme even get a public pat on the back, earning a place on an online list of participating employers.

 

And encouragingly, a massive 70 per cent of participants even reported an increase in consumer awareness of their commitment to being ethical - great publicity for any company.

 

I commend all the efforts that are going into making improvements for today's hard workers.

 

I'm sure I'm not the only one who thinks it's a disgrace that the word "poverty" can be used to describe the living conditions of any of Britain's working families in this day and age.

 

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