PLMR BECOMES LIVING WAGE ACCREDITED EMPLOYER, SHOWING COMMITMENT TO FAIR WAGE FOR INTERNS

PLMR has been accredited by the Living Wage Foundation for paying all staff, including interns, fairly. This makes PLMR one of only a small percentage of agencies that can call themselves Living Wage Employers.

PLMR are committed to providing the best employment conditions for its staff. While this is not uncommon for permanent consultants in the public relations sector, it is rare that the same conditions are extended to non-permanent staff and interns.

Interns are notoriously underpaid – research by the PRCA has found that 23% of interns in PR are paid nothing for their work, 29% are unpaid but have some expenses covered, and just 13% are paid more than the National Minimum Wage (NMW).  In total 72% of interns in the PR sector are paid considerably less than NMW. PLMR bucks this trend however, believing that if someone is working hard, they deserve to be rewarded. PLMR pays at least the Living Wage to anyone on an internship.

The Living Wage is an hourly rate set independently and updated annually, based on the cost of living in the UK. The Living Wage campaign has been running for ten years and has lifted over 45,000 people out of poverty. An independent study of the business benefits of implementing a Living Wage policy in London found that more than 80% of employers believe that the Living Wage had enhanced the quality of the work of their staff, while absenteeism had fallen by approximately 25%. 66% of employers reported a significant impact on recruitment and retention within their organisation.

Rhys Moore, Director of the Living Wage Foundation, said:
“The benefits the Living Wage brings to staff and business are clear. I welcome the leadership shown by PLMR on this important issue.”

Kevin Craig, Managing Director of PLMR, said:
“We value all of our employees, interns and permanent staff alike. We feel strongly that hard work should be properly rewarded and that means a fair wage. I’d like to congratulate the Living Wage campaign for their fantastic work.
“We are proud to receive this accreditation, and urge others in the sector to join us.”

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PLMR’s crisis communications experience is second to none, and includes pre-emptive and reactive work across traditional and social media channels. We work with a range of organisations to offer critical communication support when they are faced with difficult and challenging scenarios.