A new report which calls on finance professionals to drive change towards living wages as a critical factor in reducing inequality, advancing human rights and fostering sustainability highlights the need for a review of employment law in Northern Ireland, according to the professional accountancy body ACCA.
The report produced by ACCA, Shift and Forvis Mazars, also reinforces findings that paying a living wage improves workers’ productivity, reduces staff turnover, and increases economic stability.
Head of ACCA Northern Ireland Stephen Noonan has said that these findings are particularly pertinent in Northern Ireland which lags behind other parts of the UK* when it comes to the paying the living wage.
Calling on people to respond to the Department for the Economy’s ‘Good Jobs’ Employment Rights Bill consultation before it closes on September 30th, he said, “We have seen from recent reports from the Living Wage Foundation that despite Northern Ireland having a higher proportion of low paid workers than other parts of the UK, it has not kept pace with these regions when it comes to paying the living wage.
“Ensuring more businesses pay their employees the living wage will help to improve productivity, reduce staff turnover, and increase economic stability making the economy more robust and providing families with greater security.
“There is an opportunity within the Department for the Economy’s ‘Good Jobs’ Employment Rights Bill consultation, for finance professionals and the wider public to make their voice heard on this important matter. Ensuring that everyone has access to a fair wage and employment rights will be critical to the growth of the Northern Ireland economy in the coming months and years.”
The new report, ‘A living wage – Crucial for sustainability’, calls on finance and accountancy professionals to take immediate action in addressing wage inequality, highlighting the critical role they play in driving sustainable business practices and fostering social stability. The report underscores that without urgent intervention, wage disparities will continue to erode economic and social systems worldwide.
Using the insights from over 1,000 survey respondents across 93 countries and discussions with more than 50 finance and business professionals, the report provides compelling evidence for the socio-economic multiplier effect of living wages. It finds that paying a living wage benefits not only workers but also employers, economies, and governments.
Paying workers below a living wage is inconsistent with preserving and enhancing the value of human capital. Business and investor initiatives involving leaders from across all regions are increasingly highlighting the importance of paying living wages to reduce inequalities and the related risks to societies, economies and financial systems. Yet only 31% of the respondents felt that it was a responsibility which extended to their first-tier suppliers and even less beyond this.
Helen Brand OBE, Chief Executive of ACCA, emphasised that: ‘Accountancy and finance professionals are held to the highest ethical standards. The right of all employees and contractors to a living wage is an ethical responsibility and as a result finance professionals have a unique role and opportunity to drive it as a core part of their sustainability activities.’
The report urges finance professionals to bring living wages to board-level discussions, integrate them into sustainability strategies, and encourage their value chain, starting with Tier 1 suppliers, to pay living wages.
Read the report online.