Record number of night workers are receiving ‘at least the London Living Wage’

A record, four in five (80 per cent) workers in night time industries now receive at least the London Living Wage according to new data released today, and the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has today called on Government to do more to help those working at night.

Virtually all aspects of London’s £520bn economy are active around the clock and a quarter of London’s workforce (1.3 million people) regularly work between 6pm and 6am. However, night workers can need more support compared to daytime workers.

Research from The Liminal Space shows that those who work at night are 37 per cent more likely to have a heart attack, 44 per cent more likely to have diabetes and six times more likely to get divorced than those who work during the day.

The Mayor is calling on Government to step forward and recognise the distinct needs of night workers and commission further research into how the impact of working at night can be reduced.

The number of workers in night time industries receiving at least the London Living Wage has risen to a record 80 per cent, up from 72 per cent in 2017. However more than a third (39 per cent) of night time cultural and leisure workers, including hospitality, private security, arts and entertainment, are still paid below the London Living Wage.

The capital’s hospitality industry is already struggling to fill vacancies and the Mayor and Night Czar have warned that the Home Secretary’s plans to raise the minimum salary needed for skilled overseas workers from £26.2k to £38.7k will cause significant long-term damage.

On December 7, the Mayor visited Vauxhall in the London Borough of Lambeth to see the work going on to support night time workers and boost life at night as part of his Night Time Enterprise Zones. This included seeing a health and wellbeing session for night workers at Fire nightclub run by The Liminal Space.

The Mayor announced Vauxhall, Bromley and Greenwich as his Night Time Enterprise Zones earlier this year to boost footfall in the area after 6pm by extending opening hours, improving access to shops and services, making the high street a more welcoming and inclusive place and improving standards for night workers.

Since its launch, Vauxhall has seen visitor numbers increase by 28 per cent for its #VauxhAllNight events, with its programme building on the area’s rich heritage of LGBTQI+ nightlife and hospitality businesses run by the Portuguese-speaking community of Little Portugal.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, commented: “I’m committed to doing all I can to help make London a fairer city for all and am proud that my Night Time Enterprise Zones are supporting innovative work to help, while also providing a much-needed boost to our high streets.”

By Matthew Neville – Senior Correspondent, Bdaily

• Add me on LinkedIn and Twitter to keep up to date
• And follow Bdaily on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn
• Submit press releases to editor@bdaily.co.uk for consideration.

Looking to promote your product/service to SME businesses in your region? Find out how Bdaily can help →