Table 1 Examples of well-known living wage movements
From: (Un)beliveable wages? An analysis of minimum wage policies in Europe from a living wage perspective
Living Wage Foundation | A British initiative, which sets the living wage rates separately for London and for the rest of the country. The amount is currently £8.25 per hour outside London and £9.40 per hour in the city. They are calculated according to the real cost of living, including food, fuel and childcare. |
Harvard Living Wage Campaign | Setting living wages for Harvard workers since 1998. Starting wages for workers in the union is now $10.85 per hour, from $9 under their previous contract. |
New York City Living Wage | Existing legislation defines a living wage in New York City as a minimum of $10 per hour with benefits or $11.50 per hour without benefit. The movement is trying to pass new legislation implying a living wage equal to $14.52 per hour for 1 adult. According to the Living Wage calculator (livingwage.mit.edu), this amount is calculated based on the real cost of living, including food, childcare, medical, housing, transportation and other. (Website not available anymore) |
Asia Floor Wage | The Asia Floor Wage launched in 2009 calculates living wage in PPP$. Currently, the Asia Floor Wage is calculated to be PPP$ 725, including cost of food, housing, clothing, healthcare (including maternity and child care), education, fuel, transport and savings. (http://asia.floorwage.org/) |
Living Wage by WageIndicator | An initiative of the global WageIndicator foundation. The aim of the project at this moment is to analyse income and food security in 9 countries of East Africa: Mozambique, Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan, Ethiopia and Egypt. Despite its regional focus, the calculations are available for a high number of countries worldwide, as the eventual ambition is to produce a globally comparable living wage indicator (http://www.wageindicator.org/main/salary/living-wage/living-wage-map) |