Liverpool are to become the first Premier League club to commit to paying all employees, including casuals on match days, the real living wage.

Chelsea and Everton have also signed up to RLW initiatives, though those clubs outsource much of their staffing requirements on match days to private contractors. Liverpool pay all their employees directly and it is thought bringing everyone up to RLW rate – £8.45 per hour and £9.75 in London but set to rise before the end of the year – will cost the club around £1m per year extra.

The real living wage is voluntarily set at around £1 per hour higher than the government’s minimum of just over £7 and was devised to reflect the actual needs of working families.

Liverpool, who employ 1,000 part-time staff on match days, have reached the agreement after extensive discussions with the Living Wage Foundation and Steve Rotheram, the mayor of the Liverpool City Region.

“We hope this development demonstrates how highly we value all those who work for Liverpool in whatever capacity that may be,” Peter Moore, the Liverpool chief executive, said. “As a club we have paid the national minimum wage at the higher rate only for many years and all directly employed staff have been paid at least the real living wage since June. By taking the next step we are not adhering to an obligation, we are doing it because we feel it is the right thing to do.”

The increased payment will come into effect from the start of the next financial year, in June next year. Rotheram said: “As mayor I am delighted Liverpool have taken this step, and hopefully others will follow their example. I want the region to be at the forefront of promoting fair employment and it is enormously pleasing our Premier League clubs share this aspiration.”