PAYING all its staff enough to meet the real cost of living has seen Silsden based Ecology Building Society become the latest local business to be accredited by the Living Wage Foundation.

The ethical lender pays all employees more than the Living Wage and requires contractors working for the Society to do the same.

Paul Ellis, chief executive, said:“We believe that gross inequality has an environmental cost, which is why we were among the first organisations in the UK to implement a fair pay ratio to limit maximum salaries.

"While all the Society’s salaries already exceed the Living Wage, accreditation demonstrates our commitment to maintain this, as well as ensuring that all contractors working on our premises will also be paid the Living Wage.

"Our employees and contractors play a vital role in helping to deliver our mission to build a greener society and we believe that fair pay helps us reap business benefits such as lower staff turnover and improved customer satisfaction.”

Sarah Vero, Living Wage Foundation director, added: “We are delighted to welcome Ecology Building Society as an accredited Living Wage employer. The best employers are voluntarily signing up to pay the Living Wage. The Living Wage reflects the real cost of living, and we want to ensure as many people as possible are assured a fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work.”

Ecology Building Society ensures all employees are paid at least £8.25 an hour, regarded as the real cost of living in the UK. It is significantly higher than the Government’s current national minimum wage (£6.70 an hour for workers aged 21 and over) and, the new national living wage (£7.20 an hour for workers aged 25 and older), which will apply from April 2016.

The Society provides mortgages for properties and projects which help individuals and communities to adopt environmental building practices, improve the energy efficiency of buildings and live or work in a way that promotes a sustainable economy.

Green Party leader Natalie Bennett last year praised the “visionary business leadership” of Bradford label manufacturer Watermill Press when she presented its living wage employer accreditation.

The company, based off Manchester Road, has clients including Marks & Spencer, Britvic, Prince’s Food and the Robert McBride Group.

Managing director Dale Deacon said: “We do not believe the national minimum wage is sufficient for many people to live on and would like to see many more employers in Bradford commit to paying a living wage.”