The north has one of the highest percentages of workers paid less than the real living wage (RLW), a report has found.
RLW is a voluntary rate paid by employers, above the government designated national minimum wage.
Paid to everyone over 18, RLW considers factors including household costs, food prices, and utility expenses. It is currently £12.00 per hour, rising to £13.15 in London.
Provisional 2023 data from the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, highlights 15.6 per cent of workers in the north earn below the RLW. The figure is 10.1 per cent in Scotland and 12.9 per cent in Wales.
Compiled by the Office for National Statistics, the survey also highlights council area hotspots where one in five workers earn below the threshold - these include Belfast, Mid-Ulster and Causeway Coast and Glens.
Women are particularly affected, with 18 per cent earning less than the RLW, compared to 13.2 per cent of men.
Currently, only 97 organisations in the north are RLW employers, compared to 3,714 in Scotland and 580 in Wales.
Advice NI has now launched Living Wage NI, an initiative aimed at increasing the RLW amongst employers across the north.
It will receive £125,000 funding annually from the Department for the Economy.
Living Wage NI regional manager, Mary McManus, said the living wage enabled workers to “live decently”.
“It reduces the risk of financial difficulty. Businesses increasingly recognise that paying the real living wage is not only the right thing to do but also benefits their operations through improved recruitment, employee motivation, and productivity,” she said.
“It also has broader societal benefits by encouraging more businesses to join the movement.”
