More than a fifth of jobs in Waltham Forest and Redbridge pay below the living wage.

According to figures from charity Trust for London, Waltham Forest has the highest percentage of jobs paying below the London Living Wage in London; at 37 per cent.

A total of 30 per cent of jobs in Redbridge pay below it.

Trust for London found low paid jobs are hitting outer London harder than inner London.

The overall percentage of low-paid jobs in London is 19 per cent; which is equivalent to 730,000 individual jobs.

Waltham Forest had the highest proportion of low-paid jobs at 37 per cent, but because it has a relatively small total number of jobs it only has 17,000 low-paid jobs.

In contrast, up to 32 per cent of Waltham Forest residents are currently in low-paid jobs and up to 24 per cent of Redbridge residents are also in low-paid roles.

A spokesman for Redbridge Council said: “Low pay is a major problem for our residents.

“This isn’t a challenge that the council can fix on its own, but we are committed to acting where we can.

“All our directly employed staff are already paid London Living Wage and we are committed to extending this to our contractors, improving lives for hundreds of our residents.

“We want others in the borough to do the same and are developing plans with our public sector partners to champion the living wage across all local employers.”

Cllr Simon Miller, cabinet member for economic growth and high streets for Waltham Forest Council, said: “One of our top priorities is to improve our residents’ life chances by tackling low wages and in-work poverty.

“The council is an accredited London Living Wage Employer, which means it pays all employees the London Living Wage at a minimum and is also committed to working with our supply chain to secure the London Living Wage for their employees.

“Our Think Work programme focuses on ‘good work’ which promotes the London Living Wage and other good employment practices, in line with the Mayor of London’s forthcoming Good Work Standard.

“On a wider note, Waltham Forest has the seventh lowest unemployment rate in London, and 17 per cent of residents are self-employed, above the London average.

“The borough has seen a staggering 50 per cent increase in businesses operating here, up from 6,000 in 2010 to 12,000 in 2017, which is strong evidence that our employment base is rapidly changing.

“Waltham Forest is great place to live and work.

“We are proud to support residents as they make the most of their natural talents and creativity. We are doing all we can to ensure that our people our paid well and fairly – Government needs to do its share and meaningfully address in-work poverty.”