If your organisation applies for Scottish public sector grants, you must meet the Fair Work First criteria. Since 1 July 2023, two criteria are mandatory — failure to meet them can disqualify your grant application.
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Check whether your grant or contract requires Fair Work First compliance — all Scottish Government grants do
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Confirm you pay at least the real Living Wage (currently £13.45/hour UK rate) to all workers delivering the funded activity
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Establish effective workers' voice channels — this could be trade union recognition, staff forums, or regular employee engagement
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Review your zero-hours contracts — avoid inappropriate use or exclusivity clauses
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Consider the encouraged criteria: gender pay gap action, workforce development, flexible working, and no fire-and-rehire
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Gather evidence of compliance — you may need to demonstrate this in your grant application
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If you are a Living Wage accredited employer, this satisfies the wage criterion automatically
What counts as workers' voice
You must provide appropriate channels for workers to have their views heard. Acceptable approaches include:
- Trade union recognition: formal recognition agreement with a relevant union
- Staff forums or councils: regular meetings with elected employee representatives
- Employee surveys: systematic gathering and acting on workforce views
- Open door policies: documented processes for raising concerns (smaller organisations)
What happens if you do not comply
Grant bodies assess compliance at application stage. Non-compliance with the two mandatory criteria (real Living Wage and workers' voice) may result in your application being rejected or funding being withdrawn.
Legal basis
Primary legislation and key regulations
Read it on legislation.gov.uk (opens in a new tab) legislation.gov.uk