The National Minimum Wage has increased as of October 2009

What are the current rates of the national minimum wage?

There are three levels of minimum wage, and the rates from 1 October 2009 are:

• £5.80 per hour for workers aged 22 years and older
• a development rate of £4.83 per hour for workers aged 18-21 inclusive
• £3.57 per hour for all workers under the age of 18, who are no longer of compulsory school age

Development rate

The development rate for workers age 22 and over was abolished for pay reference periods starting on or after 1 October 2006. From that date, all workers aged 22 and over who qualify for the national minimum wage will be entitled to the main rate of national minimum wage. This applies even where the worker was previously in receipt of the development rate for those aged 22 and over and had been receiving that rate for less than six months.

Compulsory school age

In England and Wales: a person is no longer of compulsory school age after the last Friday of June of the school year in which their 16th birthday occurs.

In Scotland: pupils whose 16th birthday falls between 1 March and 30 September may not leave before the 31 May of that year. Pupils aged 16 on or between 1 October and the last day of February may not leave until the start of the Christmas holidays in that school year.

In Northern Ireland: a person is no longer of compulsory school age after the 30th June of the school year in which their 16th birthday occurs.

Accommodation offset

The daily rate of the accommodation offset is £4.51 (£31.57 per week) for each day that accommodation is provided.

 

Fair Piece Rates

From October 2004, the Government proposed that employers have to pay their workers the minimum wage for every hour they work or a fair piece rate initially set at 100% of the minimum wage. The rate was increased to 120% of the minimum wage in April 2005 at which point most home workers will receive the minimum wage.