Wellington City has taken another big step towards becoming New Zealand’s first Living Wage council.  

The councillors voted to support the Living Wage in the draft annual plan and this will include the commitment to lift the council’s minimum pay rate to the official NZ Living Wage rate of $20.20 in July. It also means a commitment to a staged implementation of the Living Wage on relevant contracts for regular and ongoing core services, with cleaning contracts as a priority in the next 12 months.

WCC will seek to obtain Living Wage accreditation within the three year electoral term. This proposal has the strong support of the Mayor and majority of councilors.  We’re not there yet, but this will be a significant victory for our Movement and will transform the lives of many low paid workers and their families. The final plan will be voted for in June.