Why Aldworth James and Bond pays the London Living Wage

Nik James, their financial director, told us why they became London Living Wage accredited employers.

Why we signed up to the London Living Wage

We wanted to make sure that staff and people in our supply chain can afford to live in London. We have all been at a certain age where we struggled financially and then on top of that living in London is hard enough. It became a no-brainer for us, especially as it wasn’t that much of a jump for us from what we had already been paying our staff. 

The benefits

How our team as a whole feels is very important to us as a business. We believe, but also know, that a good team that is happy and looked after by its employers produces better products and that’s good for business.

The challenges

The broader supply chain is hard to manage and it’s hard to ultimately enforce the London Living Wage be paid to everyone in it. But we make sure that our temporary and agency staff are paid the London Living Wage by working with accredited organisations or ones that abide by the scheme. We find that championing the benefits of the London Living Wage helps to tackle those challenges.

Why I recommend the scheme

The benefits are clear – a happier workforce produces better results. Also it benefits the local economy in the Lewisham borough. We should all be doing it.