Living Hours Employer

Step 1: Review the Living Hours standards Familiarise yourself with the three core requirements: offering a minimum of 16 contracted hours per week to workers who want them, providing at least four weeks' notice of shifts, and paying compensation equivalent to cancelled hours when shifts are cancelled with less than four weeks' notice.

Step 2: Assess your current employment practices Conduct an internal audit of your workforce's contracts, scheduling practices, and cancellation policies to identify any gaps between your current practices and the Living Hours standards.

Step 3: Implement any necessary changes Update employment contracts, HR policies, and scheduling systems to ensure full compliance with all three Living Hours criteria before applying.

Step 4: Complete the online enquiry form Submit an enquiry via the Living Wage Foundation's website. The Foundation will send you a licence form and an implementation guide to help you through the accreditation process.

Step 5: Sign and submit the licence agreement Complete the online licence form with an authorised signature, confirming your organisation meets all Living Hours standards. This is a self-declaration reviewed by the Foundation.

Step 6: Receive accreditation and the Living Hours Employer mark Upon approval, you will be granted the right to use the Living Hours Employer mark in your communications, recruitment materials, and marketing.

Step 7: Maintain compliance and renew annually Continue meeting the Living Hours standards, stay informed of any updates to the scheme, and renew your accreditation on an annual basis.

The Living Hours accreditation evaluates employer compliance across three core standards, all of which must be met in full for accreditation to be granted.

1. Minimum contracted hours: Employers must offer workers who want them a minimum of 16 contracted hours per week. This standard targets the widespread use of zero-hours and minimal-hours contracts that leave workers without a reliable income base.

2. Advance notice of shifts: Employers must provide workers with at least four weeks' notice of their shifts. This requirement addresses the problem of last-minute scheduling that makes it difficult for workers to plan childcare, education, second jobs, or other commitments.

3. Compensation for short-notice cancellations: If a shift is cancelled with less than four weeks' notice, the employer must pay the worker compensation equivalent to the hours cancelled. This protects workers from the financial harm of unpredictable schedule changes.

All three criteria are assessed through a self-declaration process. Employers sign a licence agreement confirming compliance, and the Living Wage Foundation reviews the submission. The Foundation may also conduct spot checks or respond to complaints from workers at accredited employers as part of its ongoing accountability process.

The Living Hours accreditation is a niche but growing programme within the UK's broader fair work movement. It was developed by the Living Wage Foundation — the same organisation behind the widely recognised Real Living Wage accreditation, which has over 15,000 accredited employers — giving Living Hours a credible institutional home and an established network to draw from. However, Living Hours remains considerably smaller in scale, with adoption concentrated among larger, values-driven employers in sectors such as financial services, energy, retail, and facilities management.

The programme addresses a genuine and well-documented problem in the UK labour market: the prevalence of zero-hours contracts, unpredictable scheduling, and "just-in-time" rostering, which disproportionately affect low-paid workers in hospitality, retail, care, and logistics. Growing public and political attention to in-work poverty and worker wellbeing — particularly following the COVID-19 pandemic — has increased interest in standards that go beyond minimum wage compliance. The UK government's employment rights reform agenda has also kept scheduling practices in the spotlight.

Compared to broader frameworks like the Good Business Charter or Investors in People, Living Hours is more narrowly focused, which is both a strength (clear, measurable standards) and a limitation (limited scope for organisations seeking a comprehensive fair work credential). Its closest complement is the Real Living Wage accreditation, and many Living Hours employers hold both. For organisations operating outside the UK, the certification has no meaningful market recognition, as it is explicitly designed around UK employment law and labour market conditions.

The Living Hours programme was developed and launched by the Living Wage Foundation in 2019, building on the success and infrastructure of its flagship Real Living Wage accreditation scheme. The Foundation identified that while the Living Wage addressed the rate of pay, many low-paid workers — particularly those on zero-hours or minimal-hours contracts — still faced significant income insecurity due to unpredictable and insufficient working hours. Living Hours was designed to close this gap by setting enforceable standards around hours and scheduling, not just pay rates.

The programme drew on research into precarious work and was developed in consultation with employers, trade unions, and worker advocacy groups. It launched with a small cohort of founding accredited employers, including high-profile names such as Aviva and SSE, whose participation helped establish the programme's credibility. Since its launch, Living Hours has grown steadily, particularly among larger employers in regulated or reputationally sensitive sectors. It remains a UK-specific initiative, closely tied to the Living Wage Foundation's broader mission of making the UK a better place to work.