Employers are reminded that new national minimum wage (NMW) rates will take effect from 1 October 2014, benefiting more than one million lower paid workers.
The increase in the main NMW rate to £6.50 per hour means that someone paid that rate and working a 36-hour week would receive £355 more in their pay packet over the course of a year.
The increased NMW rates were recommended by the Low Pay Commission (LPC) and accepted in full by the government earlier this year.
The LPC said the rises, the first real terms cash increase since 2008, had been set at a manageable level for employers.
The NMW rates from 1 October 2014 will be:
- a 19p (three per cent) increase in the main adult rate, from £6.31 to £6.50 per hour
- a 10p (two per cent) increase in the rate for 18 to 20-year-olds, from £5.03 to £5.13 per hour
- a 7p (two per cent) increase in the rate for 16 to 17-year-olds, from £3.72 to £3.79 per hour
- a 5p (two per cent) increase in the rate for apprentices, from £2.68 to £2.73 per hour.
Link: NMW rates
