Labour Research (October 2006)

Law Matters

Minimum wage rates

The standard main hourly rate of the National Minimum Wage (NMW) for workers aged 22 and over is increasing from £5.05 to £5.35 as of 1 October.

The development rate for 18- to 21-year-olds rises from £4.25 to £4.45 per hour. The development rate for workers aged 16 to 17 goes up from £3.00 to £3.30 per hour.

The NMW legislation was exempted from the age discrimination regulations, so employers can continue to use those age bands to pay their younger workers a lower rate.


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