The Living Wage

Abstract

A t a time when economic crisis is prompting activists to look for new ideas about the way ahead, it is useful to look back to the lessons of history. Here I explore contemporary efforts to popularise the idea of a living wage, contrasting the campaigns which ß ourished between the 1870s and 1920s with more recent demands. In both periods, work has been associated with ‘sweating’ characterised by low pay, long hours and poor conditions often in relations of subcontracted employment. This time round, however, the demand for a living wage is being made in countries as diverse as America, Bangladesh, Britain and Sri Lanka. The demand for a living wage is travelling along the sinews of the sub-contracted global economy, as workers seek to challenge the ‘real employers’ at the top of contracting chains. My argument is that the demand for a living wage can provide the means to challenge the very structure of this subcontracted economy, and to secure greater justice for those doing the work.