Earlier this month it was announced that the voluntary Jersey Living Wage – an amount on which a person can maintain a normal standard of living – increased from £9.75 to £10.20 per hour, bringing it in line with the voluntary rate used in London.
The lower minimum wage – the legal hourly rate employers must pay their staff – also increased from £7.18 to £7.50 an hour.
Catholic charity Caritas first set up a Living Wage of £9.40 per hour in the Island in 2016 and called on all employers to pay at least that rate to their staff. The charity offered accreditation to the firms that signed up to the initiative.
JT has announced it will be paying its staff the Jersey Living Wage and now caterer JPRestaurants, as well as its sister company ceramics business Jersey Pottery, have committed to guaranteeing that all staff aged 18 or above will receive at least £10.20 per hour from June.
Earlier this year the States voted for all employees of the government, including those working for subcontractors, to be paid the Jersey Living Wage starting this summer.
A statement released by JT says that its decision will be another ‘major boost’ for the Jersey Living Wage project.
‘JT began planning the implementation of the living wage for its local employees prior to the increase being adopted by the States,’ the statement says.
‘This plan will also see JT review their subcontractors’ contracts to bring everyone working for JT in line with the new Jersey Living Wage.’
JPRestaurants also confirmed that they would adopt the Jersey Living Wage for 160 full- and part-time staff working at the Oyster Box, Banjo, Jersey Crab Shack and Café Ubé, the Jersey Potteries ceramics business and Capsicum Catering, which provides catering to students at Jersey schools and colleges.
Robert Jones, a director of the company, said that their restaurant staff would also continue to be entitled to all the tips they received.
‘Unlike some restaurants, 100 per cent of our customer tips are distributed to staff,’ he said.
‘Tips are a part of the hospitality industry and until a service charge is made compulsory, as it is in France, where the price you see on the menu includes a service element, we feel we can’t increase prices and stop tipping due to the competitive environment.
‘We would be supportive of the States changing the law to follow France. The UK Living Wage Foundation have acknowledged the tips issue in the UK and it is for this reason that many restaurants are not accredited by them.’
