A ranking of the University of Cambridge's 31 colleges on the basis of wage and employment practices
Notes on the ranking:
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Emmanuel: As of the date requested the college did not have any casual workers. Casuals are only used for big catering events. This is why the number and percentage of workers earning below £8.75 is 0 despite the lowest wage on the Emmanuel pay scale being £8.00
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Wolfson - The data for percentage of staff was given as 0-1% and so has been averaged as 0.5%.
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Clare Hall - The data for number of staff was given as 0-5 and so has been averaged as 2.5. The data for percentage of staff was given as 0-10.5% and has been averaged as 5.25%.
What is the Taylor's Table?
This table has been created in order to draw attention to the wage and employment practices of the colleges that make up the University of Cambridge. Using the 2018 Real Living Wage as a benchmark, the table aims to rank each of the 31 colleges in order of how they treat their lowest paid workers.
Named after Dr Sedley Taylor, a past Professor at Trinity College, who in 1907 offered £500 to Cambridge town to pay for the dental inspection of every school child at a council-funded school, the creators of this table hope that it will lead colleges to reflect on their social responsibility. They hope that colleges take note from Dr Taylor's spirit and at least pay workers the minimum wage needed to live a normal life in one of the most expensive cities in the UK.
How was the table calculated?
The table is based on three vital pieces of information about college wage practices from all 31 University of Cambridge colleges as of 15th August 2018. This data was attained through FOI requests that can be viewed here. The delay in releasing this data is due to the slow reply of many of the colleges FOI departments.
Colleges were then ranked between themselves for each indicator; the college with the best wage practices given 31 points and the college with the worst given 1 point. These points were added up to give a total score, with the lowest hourly wage weighted double as the key indicator for wage practices. All the raw data and rankings can be viewed here.
Lowest Hourly Wage
The lowest hourly wage (excluding benefits) paid by a college to its employees or casual workers (over the age of 18, who are not trainees or apprentices, not including holiday pay) helps identify the value to the college for the workers' contribution.
No. of Staff Paid under 8.75/Hr
Academic and administrative staff were excluded to give a more representative indicator of the number of staff that are paid below the living wage across colleges.
% of Staff Paid under 8.75/Hr
Academic and administrative staff were excluded to give a more representative indicator of the percentage of staff that are paid below the living wage across colleges. Due to the huge variations in size between colleges this is a useful indicator when viewed alongside the number of staff.
What are people saying?
"We welcome this forensic research on the rates of pay at each of the 31 Cambridge colleges for their lower paid staff, people who have vital roles in the work of the colleges and University every day of the year. The payment of the real Living Wage is in our view the bare minimum all employees need in Cambridge to afford to rent housing and pay bills in a high cost city."
“Universities have significant influence in their local economies and communities, and the contribution of cleaners, caterers and security staff is vital in keeping universities running. We need to see more universities commit to pay a real Living Wage that covers the cost of living."
Lola McEvoy, Senior Campaigns Manager, Living Wage Foundation
"Its incredibly disappointing to see how poorly some colleges treat their staff. To pay less than the living wage is to fail to give staff fair or adequate remuneration for their work and severely impacts on their quality of life. I urge colleges to do more and to give staff the respect they deserve."
Evie Aspinall, President of Cambridge Union of Students
Lewis Herbert, Leader of the Cambridge City Council
“As one of the wealthiest and prestigious universities in the country, it’s simply not right that the vast majority of Cambridge University colleges are not paying workers enough to live on. The university – as a leading civic institutions and major employer – has a responsibility to do the right thing and free workers from the stress and hardship of life on low pay.”
"Paying a Living Wage not only helps to address the inequality that causes so many health and social problems in the UK, it also tells people that they, and their work, are valued. To pay less than the Living Wage is nothing more than exploitation and I am shocked and disheartened to see my own former college, Robinson, at the very bottom of this league table."
Kate Pickett, Epidemiologist and co-author of 'The Spirit Level: Why More Equal Societies Almost Always Do Better'
Matthew Bolton, Executive Director of Citizens UK
"I congratulate campaigners for digging out this important information, and urge colleges to look closely at their employment practices to make sure that their low-paid staff are getting a fair deal. The figures suggest that in too many cases, staff are not getting £8.75 an hour – in a high-cost city like Cambridge that makes it very hard for people to make ends meet. We live in a great City – it needs to be great for everyone."
“This table shows just how many colleges are failing their staff in terms of pay. Colleges will spend thousands of pounds on extravagant dinners and academic prizes, yet refuse to pay their staff a Living Wage. If colleges want to prove they genuinely care about their staff they should seek Living Wage accreditation as a bare minimum.”
Daniel Zeichner MP for Cambridge
Cambridge Living Wage Campaign
Compilers of the table
The Living Wage Campaign Cambridge helped create this table and is campaigning for the University of Cambridge and its constituent colleges to pay the living wage to all employees.
Joe Cook and Abdullah Shah (abdullahshahsanagjani@hotmail.com)
We're currently students at the University of Cambridge. In 2018, we made a film on the relationship between Cambridge University and the local community, analysing the dynamics of inequality in Cambridge. One issue that we repeatedly heard from interviewees was the ongoing exploitation of workers by many of the colleges of Cambridge University. This table hopes to provide a quantitive and easily comparable view of the varying commitments of colleges to their workers.
You can find the film below: