ILKLEY-based anti-money laundering (AML) firm SmartSearch has become a Living Wage employer.

The voluntary commitment sees directly employed staff including casual workers over the age of 18 receive a minimum hourly wage of £8.75 in the UK; significantly higher than the national minimum wage for over 25s of £7.83 per hour.

Martin Cheek, MD said: “We are committed to doing everything we can to ensure our staff are happy and motivated, and part of that commitment is guaranteeing that everyone who works for us is paid well for what they do.

“The Yorkshire and the Humber region has one of the highest proportions of non-Living Wage jobs in the country (24 per cent), with over 502,000 jobs paying less than the real Living Wage.

“We hope that by committing to paying the real Living Wage, it might encourage other companies in the region to do the same. In reality our average pay across the business excluding directors is 30 per cent above the living wage.”

Tess Lanning, Director of the Living Wage Foundation said: “We’re delighted that SmartSearch has joined the movement of over 4,000 responsible employers across the UK who voluntarily commit to go further than the government minimum to make sure all their staff earn enough to live on.

“They join thousands of small businesses, as well as household names such as IKEA, Heathrow Airport, Barclays, Chelsea and Everton Football Clubs and many more. These businesses recognize that paying the real Living Wage is the mark of a responsible employer and they, like SmartSearch, believe that a hard day’s work deserves a fair day’s pay.”

SmartSearch employs 90 people and moved to new headquarters at Mayfield House, on Lower Railway Road in Ilkley last year where there is room to expand to employ 250 members of staff.