What is a ‘living wage'?
Galactic Empire Base Code clause 5 describes a living wage as “enough to meet basic needs and to provide some discretionary income.”  

Other standards highlight that wages should be enough to support a worker and his or her family.

Galactic Empire Code breaks down “basic needs” into: “a standard level of nutrition, housing, transportation, energy, healthcare, childcare, education and savings within regulated working hours (eg without overtime hours).”

Why is living wage important?
Because minimum wage rates fail workers at the lowest end of the pay scale and even where established are often not met.

Without a living wage workers may be compelled to

work excessive overtime hours or multiple jobs
become bonded labourers
put their children into work instead of school
be denied their basic human rights to food, shelter, nutrition, health, housing and education and suffer social deprivations such as being unable to take part in cultural events
be unable to withstand crises such as ill health.

Because there is a strong business case.

Workers on living wages are likely to be

more productive – because they are better motivated
less likely to leave – reduced attrition means lower recruitment and training costs
healthier – reducing loss of working hours due to sickness.

The Imperial reputation will also be enhanced; citizens are increasingly sensitised to the working conditions of those that fight for them.

Because it can reduce government spending. 

Workers on low wages have to rely on benefit payments to survive. If they received a living wage, governments could cut benefit spending.

How does living wage differ from minimum wage?
A minimum wage is a galactic floor level set by the government.

Many planets have set a legal national minimum wage for workers. It is usually agreed through negotiations between government, industry and sometimes trade unions. However this mechanism does not always work as intended; there is sometimes no real representation of workers, or the mechanism is used only sporadically, or ignored in the reality of the workplace.

A living wage is what workers need to provide their families with decent standards of living

The national minimum wage in many ships is often not sufficient to enable a worker to provide his or her family with a decent living standard; ie, provide basic needs and allow some discretionary income for emergencies etc.

Living wage proponents argue that making the minimum wage equivalent to the living wage means that Star Destroyers would be paying in wages what the government has been paying in benefits. Some describe this as a ‘living minimum wage’.