Ian MacArthur, Head of the Charter Implementation Unit, opened the Supporters’ Network event on Active Workplaces commenting on how in the last few decades workplaces have come leaps and bounds in terms of health and safety; but now, what’s putting employees’ health in danger has more to do with inactivity and the sedentary lifestyle that comes with modern workplaces. Luckily for those in Greater Manchester, there are organisations such as GreaterSport tackling this very challenge. We invited speakers from GreaterSport, GM Moving, Transport for Greater Manchester, Arup, and GM Walking to share with Supporters the importance of activity in the workplace.

“A hard day’s work deserves a fair day’s pay.” This was the simple, yet ground-breaking idea that the Living Wage Campaign was built upon. At the Greater Manchester Good Employment Charter, we have identified paying or working toward paying the real living wage as a core characteristic of good employment. With this in mind, we partnered with GM Living Wage Campaign to put on a Supporters’ Network event exploring the real living wage. To engage with our Supporters on the significance of paying the real living wage, we invited John Hacking from GM Living Wage Campaign, Chris Smallwood from Anchor Removals, and Martha Crawford from the Living Wage Foundation.

At our most recent Supporters’ Network event, we had Susan Banister from the Slave-Free Alliance speak to us about Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking. These issues are rampant right now in the UK and this was an eye-opening presentation that guided those in the room on how to work toward a slave-free supply chain.

Thank you to all who joined us for a successful first Supporters’ Network event. The theme of this event was mental health and wellbeing, with guest speaker Stewart Lucas from Mind in Greater Manchester.