The GLWC and Anker Living Wage and Income Research Network are pleased to share three new Anker Reference Values: Living Wage for rural Tanzania, and Living Income for rural Tanzania and Rwanda. Anker Reference Values for living wages and living incomes are based on a new methodology developed by Richard and Martha Anker and Ian […]
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What is a living wage?
Remuneration received for a standard work week by a worker in a particular [time and] place sufficient to afford a decent standard of living include food, water, housing, education, healthcare, transport, clothing and other essential needs including provision for unexpected events.
Learn more…
How is it calculated?
The Global Living Wage Coalition supports the use of the Anker Methodology for estimating living wages globally. This methodology, developed by renowned living wage experts Richard Anker and Martha Anker uses a combination of primary and secondary data to create highly accurate, robust living wage estimates that are transparent, internationally comparable, and locally specific.
Learn more…
What Makes our Methodology Unique?
This manual, authored by Richard Anker and Martha Anker, describes a new methodology to measure the decent but basic standard of living in different countries, and how much workers need to earn to support themselves and their families. This information allows researchers to estimate comparable living wages around the world and determine gaps between living wages and prevailing wages, even in countries with limited secondary data.
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Case Studies
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Living Wage Reference Value – Rural Tanzania
Living Wage 2020: TZS 317,779 per month (US$139) Photo Credit: USAID Tanzania The Anker Living Wage Reference Value for 2020 for rural Tanzania is TZS 317,779 per month (139 USD). This is the wage required for workers to be able to afford a basic but decent living standard in a typical rural area of Tanzania. […]
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Living Income Reference Value – Rural Tanzania
Living Income 2020: TZS 458,092 per month (US$200) Photo Credit: Coffee Management Services The Anker Living Income Reference Value for 2020 for rural Tanzania is TZS 458,092 per month (USD 200). This is the estimated monthly cost of a basic but decent standard of living for a typical family in rural Tanzania in 2020. […]
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Living Income Reference Value – Rural Rwanda
Living Income 2020: RWF 187,633 per month (US$204) Photo credit: Borlaug Institute via AgriLife Today The Anker Living Income Reference Value for 2020 for rural Rwanda is RWF 187,633 per month (USD 204). This is the monthly cost of a basic but decent standard of living for a typical family in rural Rwanda in 2020. […]
Announcement
Living Wage Updates for Rural and Urban Pakistan Now Available
Photo credit: Marcel Crozet/ILO The GLWC is pleased to share 2019 living wage updates for Rural and Urban Sialkot, Pakistan. These are with context in the sports-ball manufacturing industry in Sialkot, Punjab Province, Pakistan. These reports update living wage estimates to account for changes in inflation, exchange rates, costs of living, and policy changes since […]
Announcement
New Living Wage Benchmark: Rural Ecuador
We are pleased to announce the publication of a new Anker Living Wage Benchmark study: Living Wage Report for Rural Ecuador, Southern Coastal Region. This report estimates a living wage for workers in rural areas of the main banana-growing regions in Ecuador’s southern coastal zone: El Oro, Los Rios, and Guayas Provinces. Read the report.
Announcement
Introducing Anker Reference Values for Living Wage and Living Income
The Global Living Wage Coalition is delighted to announce the new Anker Reference Value methodology, the next step on our journey to measure and improve Living Wages and Living Incomes around the world. It builds on data and knowledge gained from 40 complete Anker methodology benchmark studies (most of which are published on the GLWC […]
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Anker Living Wage and Living Income Reference Values
The Next Step for Estimating Living Wage and Living Income for Developing Countries Anker Reference Values for living wages and living incomes are based on a new methodology developed by Richard and Martha Anker and Ian Prates. This new methodology has the potential to greatly increase the number of countries for which credible and internationally […]
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Living Wage Reference Valueâ — Rural Rwanda
Photo credit: HarvestPlus/P. Muzogeye Living Wage 2020: RWF 147,111 per month (US$160) The Anker Living Wage Reference Value for 2020 for rural Rwanda is RWF 147,111 per month (USD 160). This is the wage required for workers to be able to afford a basic but decent living standard in a typical rural area of Rwanda. […]
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Living Income Reference Valueâ — Rural Burkina Faso
Credit: Pablo Tosco / Oxfam Living Income 2020: CFA 86,367 per month (US$146) The Anker Living Income Reference Value for 2020 for rural Burkina Faso is 86,367 CFA (146 USD). This is the estimated monthly cost of a basic but decent standard of living for a typical rural family in Burkina Faso. Download the Report […]
Announcement
New Living Wage Updates Now Available
The GLWC is pleased to share 2019 updates for six of our existing benchmarks. These reports update living wage estimates to account for changes in inflation, exchange rates, costs of living, and policy changes since the original reporting. Read the newest updates: Rural Dominican Republic Non-Metropolitan, Urban Ethiopia Rural Malawi Western Cape Region, South Africa […]
Announcement
New Living Wage Benchmarks: Nicaragua and Colombia
We are pleased to announce the publication of two new Anker Living Wage Benchmark studies! Managua, Nicaragua This report, commissioned by Patagonia, estimates a living wage for workers in the capital of Nicaragua, with a special focus on workers in the Las Mercedes Industrial Park and Free Trade Zone near the airport of Managua. Because […]
Announcement
GLWC Releases Update Reports for Costa Rica and Guatemala Living Wages
The Global Living Wage Coalition members and partners are pleased to announce the release of living wage update reports for Rural Limón and Heredia Provinces, Costa Rica and Rural Central Valley Area, Guatemala. These reports provide more recent living wage and living expenses for regions that already have a full Living Wage Benchmark Report. To […]
Announcement
GLWC Releases Update Reports for China, Brazil, and Ghana Living Wages
The Global Living Wage Coalition members and partners are pleased to announce the release of living wage update reports for Minas Gerais South/Southwestern Region, Brazil, Lower Volta Region, Ghana and six cities in China: Chengdu, Hangzhou, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Suzhou, Zhengzhou. These reports provide more recent living wage and living expenses for regions that already have […]
Announcement
Sri Lanka Benchmark Webinar
The GLWC’s newest living wage benchmark study is for the Sri Lanka Estate Sector, with context provided by the tea sector. A 2019 update of this study (undertaken in 2015) was released concurrently. Please join us for a webinar on August 28 at 9:00-10:00am EDT. The webinar will cover: General information on the GLWC and […]
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Home
Giving workers a decent standard of living Interested in learning about a specific region’s living wage? Utilizing the Anker Methodology, we’ve conducted studies all over the world to estimate an area’s realistic living wage. Use the map to select a regional living wage, or view benchmark reports by country: View by CountryBangladeshBelizeBrazilBurkina FasoChinaColombiaCosta RicaDominican RepublicEcuadorEthiopiaGhanaGuatemalaIndiaKenyaMalawiMexicoNicaraguaPakistanRwandaSouth […]
Case Study
Garment Industry in Tiruppur, Tamil Nadu, India
Tiruppur, Tamil Nadu is an important garment-manufacturing city in India with a long history of tense relations around wages. SAI began working with government, employers, and workers in Tiruppur in 2016 to foster collaborative conversation on practical steps to achieve a living wage for the city. This is an ongoing initiative; SAI is seeking participants from Tiruppur’s garment industry and civil sector and from international organizations and companies with interests in the Tiruppur garment industry for stakeholder workshops in 2019. Read about the initiative and learn how you can help advance wages in Tiruppur.
Announcement
The Global Living Wage Coalition Website Launch and Webinar
The Global Living Wage Coalition members and partners are pleased to announce the launch of our new living wage website. If you are inspired by the information contained in the site and would like to understand more about the site and how it will be used, please listen to our webinar to hear Jessica Grillo (Rainforest Alliance) and Michelle Bhattacharyya (GLWC) provide a guided tour of this exciting new website and its purpose and uses.  https://vimeo.com/278355836
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Welcome to GlobalLivingWage.org (“Website”). This Website uses cookies. Before you use the Website, you will be asked to agree to the use of cookies. You can learn about the cookies we use on our Website in this cookie policy. If you do not agree with the use of cookies, a part of the Website may […]
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Protected: Researchers
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Protected: Members
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Protected: Auditors
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Announcement
Belize Living Wage and Project Kick-off Meeting
On May 15th, 2018 representatives of Rainforest Alliance, Fyffes, IPL, and the Global Living Wage Coalition met with the Banana Growers Association in Independence, Belize to launch a new living wage project for the country. The IDH sponsored project, Next Steps in Sustainability – Measuring Impact and Testing Living Wage, led by Rainforest Alliance includes […]
Announcement
India, Urban Tiruppur, Tamil Nadu Living Wage Benchmark Now Available
The Global Living Wage Coalition members and partners are pleased to share our newest living wage estimate for Urban Tiruppur, Tamil Nadu, India. The infographic and additional valuable details, including context provided within the garment industry can be found by downloading the full benchmark report and infographic. This benchmark has been shared with a range […]
Case Study
Bananas in Costa Rica and Belize
The overall goal of this project is to improve conditions for workers through supply-chain efforts in Costa Rica and Belize, while also contributing to dialog and progress on living wages and shared value globally.
Worksheets
Protected: Living Wage Auditor Guidance
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Living Income
What is the Difference Between Living Income and Living Wage? The concepts of “living wage” and “living income” are both about achieving a decent standard of living for households. The idea of a living wage, however, is applied in the context of hired workers (in factories, on farms, etc.), whereas living income is discussed in […]
Announcement
Guatemala Rural Central Region Living Wage Benchmark Now Available
THE GLWC members and partners are pleased to share our newest living wage estimate for the Rural Central Region of Guatemala. View the full benchmark report and the infographic in English and Spanish. The GLWC has also scheduled English and Spanish language webinars on this Guatemala living wage report, to create an opportunity for you […]
Case Study
East Africa Flower Industry
This programme aims to promote Living Wages for workers in flowers and plants by producing research on living wage and wage setting in Ethiopia and Kenya. The programme aims to build awareness regarding wage issues, mutual trust required for collaboration and acceptance of the need for Living Wage among supply chain actors.
Case Study
Bananas in Ghana and Ecuador
In both Ecuador and Ghana, bananas continue to be a core commodity for income generation. This pilot project provides a powerful opportunity to determine the gap between actual wages and living wages, and ultimately establish a living wage benchmark in each country using the Anker methodology.
Case Study
Rural Malawi
The Malawi Tea 2020 Programme is an ambitious, action-oriented coalition of Malawian tea producers, trade unions, major international tea buyers, relevant certification standards, NGOs, and donors.
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The Anker Methodology for Estimating a Living Wage
A Shared Approach to Estimating Living Wage Founding Global Living Wage Coalition (GLWC) members, Fairtrade International, GoodWeave International, Rainforest Alliance, Social Accountability International (SAI), and UTZ formed the GLWC to work together on the methodology, promotion, and implementation of a living wage for the workers that are protected by their respective labour standards. The organisations […]
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Members and Partners of the Global Living Wage Coalition
The Global Living Wage Coalition is an unprecedented collaboration between sustainability standards organisations and two renowned living wage experts, driven by a common interest in improving wages for workers around the world. Members and partners of the GLWC—Fairtrade International, GoodWeave International, the Rainforest Alliance/UTZ, Social Accountability International (SAI), ISEAL Alliance, and international living wage experts […]
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What is a Living Wage?
The Global Living Wage Coalition has agreed to a succinct definition of living wage that incorporates the main ideas found in over 60 living wage descriptions and definitions from human rights declarations; national constitutions; NGO, multinational, and corporate codes of conduct; International Labour Organization (ILO) documents; and statements of major historical figures (Anker 2011). A […]
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Subscribe for Updates
Sign up below to… Keep updated with the work of the coalition. Receive living wage benchmark reports as they come out.
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Privacy Policy
The Global Living Wage Coalition website is currently administered by the Rainforest Alliance. Activities on this website are governed by the Rainforest Alliance’s privacy and cookie policies.
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Contact Us
For any questions about the Global Living Wage Coalition and our activities, please email glwc@globallivingwage.org. To be added to our mailing list and receive updates about our work, releases of benchmark studies, or information about upcoming events, please subscribe to our mailing list. If you would like to learn more about the efforts of our members […]
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Frequently Asked Questions
What Constitutes a “Living Wageâ€? Living wage has become the accepted term in English for describing decent wages. In a 2011 International Labour Organization (ILO) review of living wage descriptions, definitions, and methodologies, Richard Anker found a consensus about what constitutes a living wage. That consensus is reflected in the GLWC’s definition of living wage: “The remuneration […]
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Ways to Get Involved
A shared approach is key for measuring and implementing living wage efforts around the world.
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About the Global Living Wage Coalition
Our Vision Workers around the world can afford a decent life for themselves and their families. Our Mission Provide high quality and consistent knowledge and information about living wage levels, implementation, and impact necessary for stakeholders of all types to collaborate in a non-competitive environment toward wage increases globally. Who We Are The Global Living […]
Announcement
Global Living Wage Coalition – Strategic and Operational Meeting
On March 8, 2018, GLWC Management Committee and Strategic Advisory Roundtable Members met in Bonn, Germany at FSC offices to discuss the future direction of the GLWC. The two day session allowed an important opportunity for members to reflect on our accomplishments thus far and to assess priorities as the GLWC continues to advance on […]
Announcement
Sri Lanka Estate Sector Living Wage Validation Event
On August 24, 2017, at the IPS Auditorium, the GLWCÂ and Fairtrade International, in partnership with the IPS, conducted a major validation event for its Sri Lanka Estate sector living wage study. The session gathered a range of stakeholder representatives from the Regional Plantation Companies (RPCs), estate sector Trade Unions, policymakers, academia, industry associations, and […]
Announcement
Anker Methodology for Estimating Living Wages Published
Richard and Martha Anker recently published Living Wages Around the World: Manual for Measurement, which describes a new methodology to measure a decent but basic standard of living in different countries. 45 years… that’s how long Richard Anker jokingly estimates that he and his wife and collaborator Martha Anker have been working on developing their […]
Announcement
Vietnam Urban and Rural Living Wage Validation Event
On April 25, 2017, in Hanoi, Vietnam , the GLWC and Social Accountability International (SAI), in partnership with the ERC – The Research Center for Employee Relations, conducted a validation event for its Vietnam Urban and Rural living wage studies. This event appealed to stakeholders across a range of industries as the estimates created cover […]
