Leading dementia care operator Belong will extend remuneration above the Real Living Wage for all staff from next month, increasing its starting salary to a minimum of £10 per hour.
From 1 January 2022, employees of all ages working at Belong’s villages and home care services across north-west England the West Midlands will be paid at least £10 per hour on joining, and increasing as they progress according to the seniority and responsibilities of the role.
Belong has paid colleagues the Real Living Wage for the past five years, placing it amongst just 9,000 employers in the UK who pay their workforce a wage designed to meet the everyday cost of living.
The increase widens the differential between Belong’s pay and the minimum National Living Wage, which, from April 2022, is set to rise to £9.50 per hour for those aged over 23, as set out in the government’s most recent budget.
It is also higher than the Real Living Wage, which increased to £9.90 for workers outside London last month.
“As a not-for-profit organisation, Belong has always been committed to reinvesting in our people and it feels particularly important after what has been an extremely tough period,” said Belong chief finance officer Chris Hughes.
“The pandemic has shone a light on the hard work and dedication of those working in the care industry and we are keen to ensure they are rewarded accordingly for their contribution, above both statutory law and the sector,” he added.
“We are fortunate that demand for Belong villages and services remains high, which enabled us to return to pre-pandemic occupancy levels earlier this year, and we have been keen to pass on the benefit of this across the workforce.”
Meanwhile, Belong said its occupancy is running at an average of 95 per cent across the group of seven care villages, while average UK care home occupancy is still recovering from a fall to 79.4 per cent in 2020 according to Knight Frank’s 2021 UK Care Homes Trading Performance Review.
