THE largest technical institution in Scotland has become a real living wage employer with service providers and Modern Apprentices all benefitting from the accreditation.

The news has been welcomed by union leaders who said City of Glasgow College was setting a positive example to the further education sector.

Around 50 contractor staff will benefit from the accreditation, most of them working in catering and security and employed by contractors Baxter Storey and Mitie partner services.

Ann Gamble, Unison representative at City of Glasgow College said the union was delighted to have been part of the campaign for living wage accreditation.

“The Scottish Living Wage is good for workers as they benefit from higher pay, improved health and motivation,” she said.

“It is also good for the college and associated businesses as it reduces turnover, improves productivity and helps recruit and retain the best staff and of course it’s also good for the economy as it results in lower benefit costs. We commend City of Glasgow College for setting this positive example and particularly for encouraging its outsourced services to follow suit.”

“However, despite the progress that has been made, we know there is still more to be done across the wider college sector and we will continue to urge those few colleges not yet signed up, to do so sooner rather than later.”

The college principal, Paul Little, said the decision had been made to sign up for Scottish Living Wage Accreditation to show that the well-being of staff and associated staff was important to their employers and that they were valued.

“Working in partnership with Unison, we are delighted to be recognised as a living wage employer,” he said. “That includes our business partners who also provide services at our twin site super campus. It is encouraging to now be part of a network of some 3000 organisations across the UK who have voluntarily joined this significant and growing movement.”

Since its creation in 2010, the college has been leading a major regeneration of Glasgow’s city centre. Its city campus near Glasgow Cathedral has industry scale facilities while the Riverside campus, which overlooks the banks of the River Clyde, specialises in nautical science and engineering.