UK national minimum wage to increase as of October

By

Cajsa Lykke Carlson

Published
Mar 17, 2015

The national minimum wage in the UK is set to increase on October 1 2015, up from £6.50 per hour to £6.70 per hour, the UK government announced on Tuesday.

The increase is as recommended by the Low Pay Commission (LPC) in March 2015 this year. The government also increased the apprentice rate, but went against LPC's recommendation and increased it by 57 pence to £3.30. It's the largest ever increase in the National Minimum Wage for apprentices, as the government intends for apprenticeships to deliver a wage that is comparable to other choices for work.

In addition, Business Secretary Vince Cable is also planning to launch the National Minimum Wage Accelerator - an online tool intended to make it easier to compare rates of pay across regions, sectors and occupations.

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Wage rates for workers aged 16-20 years will also increase in October. According to the government, the new figures are the largest real-terms increase in the National Minimum Wage since 2007. It states that over 1.4 million of Britain’s lowest-paid workers are set to benefit.