British Airways i360 will pay all 160 employees working at the Brighton tourist attraction the living wage following the commitment of its catering partner to the voluntary rate.
The catering organisation, Heritage Portfolio, part of the Centerplate Group, has committed to paying all staff a minimum of £8.25 an hour. It joins British Airways i360’s suppliers ABC Translation, Brighton CCTV, Curve IT, Natural PR, and Recycling Partnership in paying the voluntary living wage rate to employees.
The tourism organisation’s corporate partners, such as Preston Insurance and Skerrits Wealth Management, have also committed to the Brighton and Hove Living Wage Campaign.
British Airways i360 pays its 70 direct employees the voluntary living wage rate, including staff who are aged under 25 years old and those who are recent school or college leavers.
In-sourced roles, such as cleaning and security staff, will also be paid the living wage.
The voluntary living wage rate is calculated according to the cost of living in the UK. It is higher than the national living wage, which currently stands at £7.20 an hour for staff over the age of 25.
Eleanor Harris (pictured), chief executive officer at British Airways i360, said: “We recognise that it’s not easy for the catering industry to do this and we want to publicly thank [Heritage Portfolio].
“We are proud that our attraction will be an exemplar in this way and we have attracted some fantastic staff who will make the visitor experience really enjoyable.”
“When we tender for services, we aim to hire [organisations that] are local, sustainable, and pay the living wage. Wherever possible we encourage our suppliers to join the Brighton and Hove Living Wage Campaign.”
Sarah Springford, director at Brighton and Hove Chamber of Commerce, added: “British Airways i360 is one of the few tourism and hospitality businesses that has signed up to the Brighton and Hove Living Wage Campaign and they’ve done it because they believe it will attract the best staff and help with retaining them. We hope this will encourage more to do it.”