From April 2016, all workers aged 25 or over must be paid the new NLW of £7.20 per hour.
This compares with the current National Minimum Wage (NMW) for this age group of £6.70 per hour.
Workers aged less than 25 years must continue to be paid the NMW. The current rates are:
- Apprentices £3.30 per hour
- Under 18s £3.87 per hour
- 18 – 20 £5.30 per hour
- 21 to 24 £6.70 per hour
Above age 24 the new NLW rate must be applied.
For employers with significant numbers of workers aged over 24 this will represent a 7.5% increase in the cost of labour. Contrast this with a reported annual increase in real wages of 2.7% in April 2015.
HM Treasury have created a National Living Wage website that sets out employers’ responsibilities in more detail:
https://www.livingwage.gov.uk/?gclid=CKaI1fHStcoCFSEIwwodG5oBfQ
