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It’s hard to see why the supermarkets have resisted real living wage accreditation for so longAt first glance, it may feel unfair to pick on Sainsbury’s in a campaign against low pay in the supermarket sector. The group’s rate of hourly basic pay is higher than Tesco’s (£10 versus £9.55) and, among Sainsbury’s directly employed staff, it is only those in outer London who are currently denied the real living wage. The company is not operating from the P&O Ferries manual of employee relations.Yet one can equally argue that campaign group Share Action, with backing from investment heavyweights Legal & General and National Employment Savings Trust among others, has chosen well in calling on Sainsbury’s to pursue full living wage accreditation. In the midst of a cost of living crisis, there is a strong sense that if cuddly Sainsbury’s, which will gush endlessly about its responsible approach to doing business, can’t step up in all respects, then nobody in the supermarket industry ever will. Continue reading...