Plan for all jobs in Greater Manchester to pay UK Living Wage
Mayor Andy Burnham said the region is "calling time on insecure and low-paid jobs" - with a strategy for all local roles to pay wages that meet the cost of living.
Mayor Andy Burnham has announced plans to turn Greater Manchester into the first city-region where every job pays workers the UK Living Wage.
The real Living Wage is based on the cost of living – and currently stands at £9.50.
Around 1 in 5 jobs in Greater Manchester (roughly 200,000) pay less than this rate, and six local boroughs – Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Trafford and Wigan – all rank below the UK average for roles that pay the Living Wage.
Statistics provided by the GMCA also show that 38.2% of black/black British workers and 34.8% of Asian/Asian British workers in Greater Manchester are in low pay (compared with 23.8% of white workers), whilst 59.5% of employees who earn less than the Living Wage are women.
Burnham arranged the first meeting of the new Living Wage City-Region Action Group this week – which will work with businesses, unions, local authorities, faith groups and charities to ensure all employers in the city-region pay the Living Wage by 2030.
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Mayor Andy Burnham said that offering the Living Wage for all workers “is what levelling up looks like”
The mayor said: “Paying a real living wage isn’t just the right thing to do for workers – it’s the right thing for businesses too.
“People already in low-paying jobs with unpredictable hours were left exposed to the worst effects of the pandemic, on their health and on their livelihoods.
“Now, Greater Manchester is calling time on insecure and low-paid jobs.
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He added: “This is the first step towards a making sure everyone working in Greater Manchester has the dignity of decent work, paid a real living wage for real living hours.
“This is what levelling-up looks like.”
Chairperson of the action group Lou Cordwell said there is also a “strong business case for paying employees the real living wage.”
Cordwell stated: “Businesses in Greater Manchester increasingly recognise that they have a social responsibility, beyond simply making a profit.
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“By paying a real living wage they can make a genuine and positive impact on their community.
“Organisations that have made the commitment benefit from more motivated employees, enjoy a reputational boost, and find it easier to attract and retain staff.”
The Living Wage announcement is another big pledge made by Burnham during his first week since re-election – having already unveiled plans for a new regional transport network that will connect trams and buses whilst expanding the Metrolink.
Featured image: Mangopear Creative / Unsplash
News
Spike in antisemitic incidents reported after Manchester synagogue terror attack
Emily Sergeant
A new report has revealed that there was a rise in antisemitic incidents reported following the Manchester synagogue terror attack.
In case you need a reminder, the shocking knife and car attack took place on 2 October 2025 on Yom Kippur – the holiest day in the Jewish calendar – at the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue, and during the incident, two men sadly lost their lives during the attack – Adrian Daulby, 53, who was shot dead by Greater Manchester Police (GMP) while trying to stop the attacker from entering the synagogue, and Melvin Cravitz, 66, a worshipper who also helped stop the attacker.
The attacker was named as 35-year-old Jihad al Shamie – a 35-year-old British citizen of Syrian descent who lived in Prestwich – who at the time was on bail for an alleged rape, before being shot dead by police.
In the wake of the attack, the Community Security Trust (CST), which monitors antisemitism in the UK, said 40 antisemitic incidents were reported on 2 October last year, and a further 40 were reported the day after – more than half of which involved direct reactions to the deadly attack.
These were the highest daily totals in 2025.
A spike in antisemitic incidents were reported after the Manchester synagogue terror attack / Credit: Google Maps | GMP
Three of the reported incidents on 2 and 3 October involved ‘face-to-face taunting and celebration of the attack to Jewish people’, according to the CST.
39 of the reported incidents were antisemitic social media posts referencing the attack, abusive responses to public condemnations of the attack from Jewish organisations and individuals, or antagonistic emails sent to Jewish people and institutions.
The Manchester synagogue attack was the first fatal antisemitic terror attack in the UK since the CST started recording incidents in 1984.
Overall, 3,700 anti-Jewish hate incidents were recorded in 2025 – which is said to be up 4% on the incidents recorded in the year before – and the CST revealed that this the second-highest annual total ever recorded.
There was also a spike in reported anti-Jewish hate incidents following the Bondi Beach killings in Sydney in December of last year too, the CST said.
Dave Rich, who is the director of police at CST, told Sky News in a statement: “We need a more robust approach to the kind of extremism that drives antisemitism.
“Jewish people in Britain used to be able to go about their lives without ever thinking about antisemitism, and now it’s the topic of conversation around every dinner table. That’s new.
“It feels for a lot of Jewish people like we’re in a different world now, the atmosphere is different, the climate has changed for Jewish people and the amount of antisemitism is part of that.”
Featured Image – GMP
News
Trailer released for new romcom Finding Emily set and filmed all across Manchester
Emily Sergeant
The first trailer for a new romcom that’s set and filmed all across Manchester has been released.
The film, titled Finding Emily, tells the story of a lovesick musician, played by Spike Fearn, who meets his dream girl on a night out, but ends up with the wrong phone number, and so teams up with a driven psychology student, played by Angourie Rice, in a bid to find her.
Together, the unlikely duo spark a hilarious campus-wide frenzy that tests their own hearts and ambitions along the way.
The film – which is directed by Alicia MacDonald, and based on a screenplay written by Rachel Hirons – is produced by Working Title Films, is set in the fictional Manchester City University, and is due to be distributed by Focus Features and Universal Pictures across the UK and internationally this spring.
The talented ensemble cast groups together big names like Minnie Driver with rising stars like Ella Maisy Purvis, Yali Topal Margalith, and Kat Ronney, as well as other established actors including Timothy Innes and Nadia Parkes.
Filming took place in Manchester between August and September 2024.
The two and a half-minute trailer has been shared with the world today, and when we say it’s a Manc film, we mean it… we quite literally lost count of how many of our city’s famous locations can be spotted in just the trailer alone.
The trailer has been released for new romcom Finding Emily set and filmed in Manchester / Credit: Universal Pictures & Focus Features (via YouTube)
There’s everything from Manchester Central Library and Piccadilly Records, to Canal Street and the Gay Village, the Northern Quarter, the Crown & Kettle pub in Ancoats, and even the Emmeline Pankhurst statue in St Peter’s Square featured for all to see, alongside what’ll, presumably, be dozens of other famous locations.
Oh, and not to mention, if you keep your eyes peeled when watching the trailer, you can even see a small clip of Stockport band Blossoms playing a gig in there too.
The Manc -
14th May 2021 
