Government Announces New Minimum Wage Rates

The Government has accepted the recommendations of the independent Low Pay Commission (LPC) for this year’s adult and youth National Minimum Wage (NMW) rates.

However, the LPC’s recommendation that the apprentice rate, which applies to apprentices under 19 or those over 19 and in the first year of their apprenticeship, should remain at £2.65 an hour has not been adopted.

The following NMW rates will come into effect on 1 October 2013:

• the adult rate will increase by 12p to £6.31 an hour;
• the rate for 18-20 year olds will increase by 5p to £5.03 an hour;
• the rate for 16-17 year olds will increase by 4p to £3.72 an hour;
• the apprentice rate will increase by 3p to £2.68 an hour; and
• the accommodation offset increases from the current £4.82 to £4.91.

The Government acknowledged the LPC’s concerns about the level of compliance with the apprentice rate but decided to raise the rate in line with the youth rates in order to continue to make apprenticeships attractive to young people. Tough new measures will be introduced to tackle non-compliance issues across the board.

The LPC’s full annual report for 2013 can be found on its website.