LOCAL Unison branch members say it is a “disgrace” that nearly half of council workers are not paid ‘real living wage’.

Foundation Living Wage of £8.45 an hour is what ant-poverty campaigners say is required to cover basic living costs.

The official National Living Wage for over 25s is £7.50 an hour.

Freedom of Information requests by BBC Wales found that 44 per cent of Pembrokeshire County Council jobs pay below this higher rate.

It was placed second on the list of 15 authorities, of 22, which did not commit to paying £8.45 for staff and contract workers.

Unison Pembrokeshire branch secretary Janet Wyer said: “Pembrokeshire councillors should be hanging their heads in shame. It is a disgrace that nearly half of the people delivering vital community services in our county are trapped in in-work poverty. They are working as hard as they can keeping public services going yet every week they’ll be fretting about paying the bills.

“There is no reason whatsoever that Pembrokeshire cannot be a Foundation Living Wage area. If the council paid decent salaries to all, they’d be more money going into our local economy, that’s more money on our high streets and for businesses.”

A council spokesman said: “Pembrokeshire County Council - along with other local authorities in Wales - is committed to reviewing its rates of pay and to that effect is signed up to the National Joint Council terms and conditions of service for local government employees.

“The Local Government Association is currently in discussions at national level with recognised trade unions in respect of future pay awards.

“There is also a commitment to review the NJC pay spine by the LGA and trade unions in order to achieve the Government’s aim of paying all staff at the rate of the national Living Wage by 2020.”