Living Wage
An estimated 95% of domestic employees in South Africa earn less than what they need to live off. Millions of men and women, whilst employed, are trapped in the cycle of poverty. We believe that employers should pursue the flourishing of everyone in their employ. As Christ-followers, this means actively discerning how our faith shapes the way that we employ and remunerate. We invite you to journey through these resources to explore how best to do that.
Covid-19 and lockdown regulations have revealed afresh the reality that many South Africans do not earn enough to save for unexpected crises. Job losses, food insecurity and lost income have impacted millions. This article from The New Humanitarian gives insight into the reality of surviving lockdown without a living wage.
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The heart of a living wage
Common Ground leader, Luke Harper, and our friend Linda Martindale, from the Warehouse, get to the heart of a living wage.
How much is a living wage?
Practical guidelines for calculating a living wage, and suggestions for having a conversation with the person you employ to make the necessary adjustments in a respectful and honouring way.
Yes, but... biblical answers to common excuses for not paying a Living Wage
‘I pay what I can afford’, ‘A low salary is better than no salary’, ‘Raising the minimum wage will increase unemployment’ and more.
Minimum wage not the same as a living wage
Current realities and figures around living expenses and practical steps you can take.
Living Wage Devotional Study
Whoever oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God – Proverbs 14:31
A six day devotional study on a biblical response to paying a living wage.
Employment, beyond a living wage
“If you want to make a difference in one person’s life, find out what their dreams are and walk a journey with them to help make them come to life.”
How we came to pay a living wage
“I realised that I had been setting wages based on norms of what others paid and not on what was right.”
A moving story of how one family found conviction to pay a living wage, by Nigel Branken
It is easy to take advantage of unemployed people in South Africa, knowing that the unemployment rate coerces people to accept wages that are below what they can live off.
