A third of West Lindsey's workforce are key workers helping on the frontline of the coronavirus pandemic

A teacher wearing a face mask attends a child at the Palotes preschool in Valladolid, on June 10, 2020. - The Palotes preschool is one of the first schools to open in the Castilla y Leon region as the country continues to loosen a national lockdown to stop the spread of the novel coronavirus. (Photo by CESAR MANSO / AFP) (Photo by CESAR MANSO/AFP via Getty Images)

More than a third of West Lindsey’s workforce is made up of key workers, new figures show.

But a leading trade unions say critical workers across the UK are risking their health for the public good but remain “scandalously” low paid.

Key workers are those who are seen as essential to the coronavirus response, and include health and social care staff, delivery drivers, supermarket employees and many others.

West Lindsey was home to 16,000 key workers in 2019, Office for National Statistics figures show.

This is equal to 37 per cent of the area’s workforce, slightly above the UK average of 33 per cent.

A separate analysis by jobs website Check-a-Salary shows the average salary for a full-time key worker in Lincolnshire is £29,538.

That is higher than the £19,344 that would be received working 40 hours per week at the real Living Wage of £9.30 per hour, which is set by the Living Wage Foundation. But the analysis also shows the lowest ten per cent of earners take home an average of £19,448, while the lowest paid key workers, nursery nurses, earn an average of just £17,124.

The Trades Union Congress says around 40 per cent of key workers across the country are paid less than £10 an hour, compared to just 30 per cent of non-key workers, with general secretary Frances O’Grady saying they now deserve a pay rise as a thank you for keeping Britain going through the pandemic.

She said: “Frontline workers are putting their own health on the line to look after the rest of us. They are caring for the sick and vulnerable, getting us to work, keeping our shelves stocked and our vital services running. Now it’s time for ministers to give key workers a proper thank you. And that means getting money into their pockets now.”

There are 10.6 million key workers across the UK, in a workforce of 32.6 million. The largest proportion of key workers in the East Midlands and across the country are those in health and social care, making up 11 per cent of the workforce in the region.

A petition by Citizens UK is calling for all key workers to be paid the living wage of £9.30 per hour outside of London and £10.75 per hour in London, including a £1.4 billion boost to care sector salaries.