Mar 2014
5
Possible UK minimum wage increase rate
The low pay Commission has recommended that the adult NMW rate should increase 3% on 1st October 2014 from £6.31 to £6.50 per hour.
The other recommendations from the LPS are:
- The adult rate to increase by 3% to £6.50 per hour
- The Youth development rate to be increased by 2% to £5.13 per hour
- The rate for 16 – 17 year olds to be increased by 2% to £3.79 per hour
- The apprentice rate to be increased by 2% to £2.73 per hour
- The accommodation offset to be increased by 3.5% to £5.08 per day
The minimum wage has risen faster than other wages since the worldwide economic slowdown, and the wages of the lowest paid are higher relative to those of workers from previous decades. However in day to day living ,the minimum wage has fallen because minimum wage and average wages have been exceeded by inflation. The LPC have published an executive summary of its 2014 report together with a letter from the LPC to ministers. The government is expected to publish the full 2014 report of the LPC during the next few weeks.
The LPC believe that the economic recovery should this year allow an increase in the real value of the minimum wage, the first increase for at least 5 years. The LPC are recommending that the adult rate should increase by 3% on 1st October from £6.31 to £6.50 an hour. The LPC believe this is likely to increase the number of jobs covered by the minimum wage by over a third to around one and a quarter million.
