More than 300,000 employees for firms signed up to the voluntary Real Living Wage will benefit from a pay rise of 40p to £9.90 an hour from today.
Real Living Wage employers in London – within the M25 - will pay £11.05 an hour, a 20p rise.
This is separate to the government’s mandatory National Living Wage, which is currently £8.91 an hour for anyone over the age of 23.
Instead, the Real Living Wage factors in issues such as inflation when deciding how much workers need to live on.
Almost 9,000 employers throughout the country have signed up to the policy - 3,000 of them during the pandemic.
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The latest employers to join include housebuilders Taylor Wimpey and Persimmon Homes, Fujitsu, food delivery company Getir and outsourcing firm Capita.
Most supermarkets including Tesco and Ocado are also signed up to it.
Half of the FTSE 100 along with Everton Football Club, Aviva, Burberry and Nationwide building society also pay the Real Living Wage.
The recommended rate is intended to ensure all staff earn a wage that meets the real cost of living and covers everyday needs.
Latest research by the Living Wage Foundation shows that there are still 4.8 million jobs - 17.1% of all employees - still paying less than the Real Living Wage in the UK.
Workers from ethnic minority groups are also more likely to be low-paid, with 19.4% of these workers earning below the Living Wage, compared with 16.3% of white workers.
TUC general secretary Frances O'Grady said that the report showed that low pay was "endemic", with millions of workers in jobs that do not fully cover their bills.
"With Britain in the middle of a cost-of-living crunch, it's time for the government to act," she said.
"Ministers must start by increasing the minimum wage to £10 immediately, banning zero hours contracts and giving trade unions greater access to workplaces to negotiate improved pay and conditions."
The Living Wage Foundation's director, Katherine Chapman, said the new pay rates, will apply from today – not the new tax year next April.
She said it would "provide hundreds of thousands of workers and their families with greater security and stability".
At the Budget, Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced that the National Living Wage will increase next year by 6.6%, to £9.50 an hour.
The Universal Credit uplift has ended for those on state support – however the taper rate has been cut, allowing claimants to keep more of the payment.
Is your employer an advocate of the Real Living Wage? Check if your employer is on the scheme, here.
