Dear Pembroke College, Cambridge,

I am writing to make a request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 for information relating to your employment practices. I would like to know the following:

1. As of July 16th 2019, the exact lowest hourly wage (excluding benefits) paid by the college to workers (employees or casual workers), over the age of 18, who are not trainees or apprentices, not including holiday pay.

2. Please outline any cash benefits that were given to workers (employees or casual workers) paid your lowest hourly wage, who are over the age of 18, and who are not trainees or apprentices, in the year prior to July 16th 2019 and how these are allocated.

3. As of July 16th 2019, the number of workers (employees or casual workers), if any, over the age of 18, who are paid by the college and paid below £9 per hour.

4. As of July 16th 2019, the percentage of workers (employees or casual workers) in the college in non-academic/administrative positions who are over the age of 18 and paid below £9 per hour.

5. As of July 16th 2019, any benefits given to workers paid below £9 per hour. This could include, but is not restricted to, things like: meals, paid holidays, healthcare and dental schemes, uniforms, car parking, bonuses, cycle purchase schemes, etc.

6. As of July 16th 2019, are there any conditions for benefits given to workers paid below £9 per hour. This could include, but is not restricted to: probation periods, minimum employment times, minimum work amounts, good behaviour.

7. As of July 16th 2019, is the college currently in the process of gaining accreditation from the Living Wage Foundation?

8. The name(s) of any external employment agencies used to provide staff in the year prior to July 16th 2019.

9. If the college uses any external employment agencies to provide staff, the number of contracted staff who worked 2 or more hours a day, in any day of the week, for 8 or more consecutive weeks, in the year prior to July 16th 2019, who were paid below £9 per hour.

If you are to invoke Section 43 to withhold information in relation to any of these questions please note you must provide details of the exact FOIA exemption, details of who would be prejudiced by this information, and a public interest test justifying a conclusion with arguments for and against the release of the information.

Thank you very much for your assistance with this request. If you would like any clarification on the information I have asked for, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. I look forward to receiving your response in the next 20 working days.

Yours faithfully,

Ben Margolis

Dear Becky,

Thank you for your response. Although holiday pay is a legal entitlement, could you please revise all questions following question 1 excluding holiday pay from consideration? If you are withholding information in question 8 under Section 43 of the FOIA, as per that section would you please clarify your reasoning?

Kind regards,
Ben Margolis

Dear Dr Coombs,

In your initial answer to question 3 you said that no workers are paid under £9 including holiday pay, and answered subsequent questions with this taken into account. To clarify my question, I would like to rephrase Q3 as:

3. As of July 16th 2019, the number of workers (employees or casual workers) over the age of 18, who are paid by the college and paid less than £9 an hour (excluding holiday pay).

Additionally, would you please revise subsequent questions to include workers who are payed less than £9 an hour excluding holiday pay?

Kind regards,
Ben