THE living wage is to increase by 20p to £7.85 an hour, boosting the pay of thousands of workers in Scotland.
The new figure was revealed as a new study showed that 5.2 million people across the UK, or 22 per cent of the workforce, are paid less than the living wage - an increase of one per cent over the past year.
Finance Secretary John Swinney will today meet employers that are paying the new rate, which is well above the national minimum wage of £6.50 for adults aged over 21.
About 60 companies based in Scotland pay the wage, according to the Living Wage Foundation. In the last year organisations including Standard Life, RBS and the SECC have all become accredited employers.
Mr Swinney said: "The new rate announced this morning of £7.85 will apply from April 1 next year as part of 2015-16 pay settlements. We are firmly of the view that employers should reward their staff fairly and encourage businesses throughout the country to support the living wage campaign."
The Government is funding a pilot by the Poverty Alliance over the next year to promote take-up of the living wage and increase the number of employers paying it.
Peter Kelly, director of the Poverty Alliance, said: "The living wage in Scotland is now gaining genuine momentum with employers - the number of employers paying it here has tripled from 20 to 60 in the last six months."
SSE is the largest FTSE 100 company to pay the living wage and is to be recognised for its support with an award from the foundation.
Research by KPMG, one of the Living Wage Foundation's principal partners, found more than 400,000 workers in Scotland are currently being paid less than the living wage.
Nationwide and Heart of Midlothian Football Club are among the recent employers to ensure all their directly employed staff, as well as third-party contractors such as security and cleaning teams, are paid at least the Living Wage.
Stephen Uden, head of corporate citizenship at Nationwide, said: "We are pleased to pay all our staff, from branch cleaners to cashiers and senior managers, fair and decent levels of pay. Accrediting as a Living Wage employer made good business sense. Our customers told us that they value our commitment to fair reward for all."
Rhys Moore, director of the Living Wage Foundation, said: "The good news is that the number of accredited Living Wage employers in the UK has more than doubled this year - over 1,000 employers across the country have signed up."
Celtic Football Club came under pressure last month to increase staff pay after the board recommended refusing to pay a living wage.
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