April 7 2011 - Changes to national minimum wage rates will take effect from October 1 2011:
- The adult (aged 21 and over) minimum wage rate will increase from £5.93 to £6.08 an
hour
- The Youth Development Rate (18-20 year olds) will rise from £4.92 to £4.98 an hour
- The minimum wage for 16-17 year olds will increase from £3.64 to £3.68 an hour
Apprentice pay will increase from £2.50 an hour to £2.60. This rate will apply to those apprentices who
are under 19 or those that are aged 19 and over but in the first year of their apprenticeship.
Business Minister Vince Cable said:
"More than 890,000 of Britain’s lowest-paid workers will gain from these changes. They are appropriate - reflecting the current economic uncertainty while at the same time protecting the UK’s lowest-paid workers. I would like to thank the LPC for doing a good job in difficult circumstances."
David Norgrove, Chair of the Low Pay Commission, said:
"We welcome the Government's acceptance of our recommendations. The Commission was again unanimous, despite all the economic uncertainties. We believe we have struck the right balance between the needs of low-paid workers and the challenges faced by businesses."
TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber said:
"The increases in minimum wage rates show that the government understands the NMW must remain an important part of working life.
"These rises are relatively modest, but they will provide a welcome pay boost for around 840,000 low-paid workers in the UK.
"It is only fair that employers play their part in combating low pay, and the LPC has taken great care to ensure that the new rates are set at a level that will not damage job creation in these uncertain economic times.
"With research* suggesting that workers on the miniumum wage spend 100 per cent of their pay rises where they live or work, these increases should provide a modest stimulus to local economies.
"There will be room for much more generous increases in future years once the economy begins to recover. But the government also needs to address the issue of youth unemployment, which has led to the LPC recommending a smaller increase for younger workers this year.""
* The Spending and Debt Response to Minimum Wage Hikes, Daniel Aaronson, Sumit Agarwal, and Eric French, Federal Bank of Chicago, December 2008, reveals that minimum wage workers spend 100 per cent of their pay rises locally.
