4. What progress has been made towards ensuring that all staff employed directly or indirectly by the Commission are paid the real living wage? OAQ51603

The Commission has been an accredited living wage employer since December 2012 and requires that all staff employed directly are paid at least the living wage. We also do all that we can to ensure that all staff employed via contractors are paid the living wage as a minimum, by making this a contractual obligation. Our contractors are required to provide evidence that they are up to date with the latest living wage rate.

Well, thank you for that answer, and I very much welcome the work that has been done in terms of directly employed employees and the payment of the living wage—the real living wage—but there is still considerable concern with regard to those who are indirectly employed, because it is very clear that there are those who are not paid the real living wage. I wonder if it would be possible to have perhaps a statement circulated giving us information about precisely how many people there are that are on these indirect contracts that are not being paid the real living wage, and what the timescale might be for the actual achievement and the assurance that that situation changes. Because it is a matter of considerable concern. We are here promoting the real living wage; we are putting ourselves forward as exemplars. I know the Assembly doesn't employ, but we have direct accountability for the Assembly Commission, and it seems to me that we haven't quite yet achieved the laudable objective that we have set that everyone who is employed directly or indirectly should be paid the real living wage.

Before I took this post—the reason for taking this post was because I am really very keen on driving forward equal opportunity in work, whether that's through pay or any other means. I have not actually received any reports that say that we are not paying the living wage. So, if you have a particular case that you want to bring to my attention, I will welcome that. What I have done—and we've been working towards it—is arrange meetings with people who are both directly employed and who are agency or contractually employed staff so that I can meet and discuss with them personally, or their representatives, their terms and conditions, because I think that, as politicians, it is really, really important that we demonstrate real commitment towards those who we employ, especially when we're in receipt of awards and we're trying to set ourselves up as exemplars.