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As a Union, we must pave the way for student employers by implementing a £7.20 living
minimum wage for ALL our members that we employ. Kent Union must also lobby the
University, and demand the same for student employees in Kent Hospitality. Finally, we must
then lobby Canterbury City Council and other local businesses to set a standard, to set a
£7.20 living wage for ALL in Canterbury.
In the long term, this will mean that students can afford to take on fewer hours without a
reduction in pay, and concentrate more time on their studies. This promotes the correct
image for a student's union – supporting and encouraging its members to succeed,
academically. This will also, in cases where students decide to cut their hours due to higher
wages, allow the Union to have the capacity to increase the number of student staff – in
order to cover every shift.
2.0 Data relating to living costs for students
2.1 Facts about Student Employment – NatWest Student Living
Index 2008
• 4 in 10 undergraduate students were employed in 2008.
• 750'000 undergraduates will be working at some point in the 08/09 academic year.
This equates to around 42% of UK students.
• 25'000 more students in the UK took on employment in 2008 than in the year before.
• Over 2008, students are expected to have spent £10.8 billion on living and
accommodation costs, this is a £0.5 billion increase from the previous year (spending
by students in 2007 was significantly less at £10.3 billion).
As we can see in the above table, students at Kent have a far greater average yearly debt
than students at universities in London, whilst there is also some parity in the cost of
accommodation in the South East, with London being (unsurprisingly) slightly higher. This
leads us to the obvious conclusion that Kent Students are more heavily in debt than those
at some London universities – therefore the need to work for Kent students is perhaps
greater. Also, that while it is not quite as expensive to rent in Canterbury as it is in London,
higher wages are required for students to make ends meet and continue their studies.
The 2008 Greater London Authority (GLA) report determined that the living wage for the
city of London was £7.45 per hour. Currently the Fair Pay Network, a coalition of charities
and trade unions including the National Union of Students (NUS), are researching and
developing criteria to determine the actual living wage standard for each region around
the country, as well as seeking to combat the high levels of wage inequality in the UK.
However, there currently exists no data, and few initiatives, in the South East to eradicate
low pay and to promote a fair living wage standard. I want Kent Union to change this.
We are calling for £7.20 per hour; reflecting the 2007 London living wage. In London, the
hourly rate was calculated by using the Basic Living Costs approach, and the Income
Distribution approach - calculating exactly what a person required to live off per week and
per month. Unfortunately, Kent Union does not have at its disposal the finances nor the
resources to set up a permanent Living Wage Unit, however, we can set the bar high now,
and we can lobby Canterbury City Council to set up a Canterbury Living Wage Unit, to
determine what is fair pay, and fair pay for all, both part-time workers and for full-time
workers within Kent Union, the University of Kent, and with the businesses in Canterbury.
http://www.fairpaynetwork.org/?page=case_for_business
3.4 TUC Document of how to implement a Living Wage into a
Trade Union
http://www.tuc.org.uk/extras/livingwage.pdf
http://www.livingwageemployer.org.uk/list.htm