(Wednesday 18th September) Today the responsible investment NGO ShareAction will attend its 11th annual general meeting (AGM) in its campaign for the real Living Wage for workers in the retail sector when they will attend the AGM of Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group. A shareholder in Frasers Group working with ShareAction will ask the Chairman David Daly and the board of directors to look at and approve adoption of the real Living Wage for thousands of direct and indirect employees of the company.
The Living Wage question will come the same day Mike Ashley will seek the board’s approval to cash in £585 million in shares. The company, which is known for high street brands it owns such as Jack Wills, House of Fraser and Sports Direct, generated profits of over half a billion pounds last year, a rise of over thirteen percent.
The ShareAction will also present a letter to the board of Directors signed by over 2000 members of the public calling on Frasers Group to accredit as a Living Wage employer.
Dan Howard, Head of Good Work, said: “Despite the vital contribution of its thousands of workers in stores and warehouses to Frasers Group’s success, the company continues to pay many of its employees poorly.
“At the same time, years of significant and lasting rises in the costs of basic goods and services has left millions of households struggling to get food on the table, and growing numbers of working adults in poverty.
“The company can and must do more to ensure its lowest paid workers can at least cover the costs of their everyday needs, and commit to paying all its staff the real Living Wage.”
ShareAction is urging Frasers Group to accredit as a Living Wage employer, which would mean all staff including third-party contractors would be guaranteed the real Living Wage on an ongoing basis, and to set out a timeline for doing this.
There is growing concern among the investment community about the systemic harm that low pay poses to the broader economy. This year, as part of its Living Wage campaign for high street workers, ShareAction attended the AGMs of major retailers including Tesco, Greggs, Next, B&Q owner Kingfisher, to make the case for these businesses to end poverty pay.
ShareAction’s Good Work investor coalition, representing $7.1 trillion in assets under management, is calling for movement across the retail sector toward real Living Wage accreditation.
Notes to editors
Established by the Living Wage Foundation, the real Living Wage is the minimum hourly rate necessary for workers to afford housing, food, and other basic needs. The new real Living Wage rates for 2024/25 are £12 per hour in UK (up from £10.90) and £13.15 per hour in London (up from £11.95).
