Live Active Leisure, one of the area’s largest employers with a 600+ strong team, has been accredited as a Scottish Living Wage employer.

The sports and fitness Trust employs full time, part time and casual staff across a mix of disciplines including sport, fitness, administrative and specialist professions.   

An official commitment to ensure every job within the Company met the Scottish Living Wage standard was made in April 2017, and following a complete revision to their pay structure, individual increases were made in April 2018.  Full accreditation as a Scottish Living Wage employer was then awarded in October 2019.

Diane Gaffney, Head of Corporate Support Services for the Company commented, "We have always been on or near this important measurement of a fair hourly rate and so making the commitment to set it as standard was the natural next step.

"The process has seen significant investment from the company and we're delighted to have had this recognised by Scottish Living Wage and to join the list of 1621 employers working together to make working in Scotland fairer for all.

Becoming an employer of choice is no accident, and over the years we have strived for best practice policies and we are proud of our high levels of staff retention.”

Thirty contracted staff were positively affected by the increase in pay, along with a number of casual staff including coaches and assistant coaches working across all fifteen Live Active Leisure venues. 

Reaching the Scottish Living Wage benchmark is the most recent policy in a proactive approach by Live Active Leisure in ensuring a fair and enjoyable work place environment for their team. Other initiatives include the Healthy Working Lives scheme in which they have Silver Accreditation, an in house Rewards and Recognition Scheme and a new ‘Our People’ app which allows staff to access company news, development opportunities, benefit information and more. 

The real Living Wage is calculated annually by the Resolution Foundation and overseen by the Living Wage Commission, based on the best available evidence on living standards in the UK. A detailed account of the methodology behind it's calculation is available here.

The real Living Wage in Scotland is currently £9 per hour, and is based on cost of living.

As an employer, holding the Scottish Living Wage accreditation is a symbol of responsible business practice.