The archbishop of York, John Sentamu, has condemned the low wages of millions of Britons as a "national scandal", saying businesses have ignored a moral duty to ensure that all employees are paid enough to live on.

In an outspoken intervention that will reignite tensions between church leaders and the government, Sentamu accuses those in power of offering only "warm words" and "sticking plaster" solutions to a problem that is having "devastating" effects on people's lives.

Writing in the Observer, Sentamu, who is to chair a year-long commission on the need for a "living wage", says more women than men are affected by the scourge of low pay and warns progress towards gender equality could be hit if wages continue to fall in real terms.

"Women, as the majority of low-paid workers in this country, are hit particularly hard," he says. "Low pay threatens the great strides that have been made in gender equality in recent decades, because it undermines women's economic independence. This is a huge loss for them and for society as a whole."

The archbishop attacks successive governments which, he says, have stood by and watched as company bosses have taken huge profits and pay packages for themselves while refusing to reward their employees.

He argues that it is both morally and economically wrong for government to give tacit approval to an approach that lands the state with a huge bill to top up the incomes of the lowest earners.

"The holes in millions of pay cheques are being plugged by in-work support to the tune of £4bn a year. But why aren't those who are profiting from their workers paying up? Why is government having to subsidise businesses who don't pay their employees enough to live on? It is a question we need to answer and act on – fast. The cost of living is rising but wages are not. In the rush for profit, and for high pay at the top, too many companies have forgotten the basic moral imperative that employees be paid enough to live on."

His decision to plunge into the heart of a policy debate that is bound to take centre stage at the next election will be seen as highly controversial. But in his article Sentamu shows his frustration at the failings of the political class to act, and his sense of moral obligation to step in. Taking aim at the prime minister, he says: "David Cameron has described it [the living wage] as a good and attractive idea. I agree. Of course, at the end of the day, though, what workers really need is pay, not platitudes. The reality is that despite these warm words, too few companies have stepped up to the mark."

The commission, set up by the centre-left thinktank Compass, with funding from the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust, will bring together leading figures from business, voluntary organisations, trade unions and academia.

It will examine how to take forward the idea of a "living wage", a level defined as enough "to ensure a basic but acceptable standard of living". While the leaders of all three main political parties have expressed support, take-up has been slow. Only 45,000 workers have so far seen their pay boosted as a result.

The living wage, set by the Centre for Social Research and the Greater London authority, stands at £7.45 for workers outside London and £8.55 for those in the capital. The statutory minimum wage is £6.19.