Most people who work are entitled to get paid at least the National Minimum Wage. This includes casual workers, people on zero hours contracts and agency workers.
As you know, the minimum wage goes up each year on 1st April. The 1st April 2025 increases benefit younger workers in particular, with the rate for apprentices rising from £6.40 to £7.55 an hour and the rate for those between 18 and 20 rising from £8.60 to £10 an hour. The aim is to have a single rate for all adults, and this is seen as a step towards achieving this.
For the rest of us, the rate will increase by 6.7% from £11.44 to £12.21 an hour. This amounts to a £1,400 annual pay rise for someone working full-time (35 paid hours per week).
According to the Living Wage Foundation the real living wage is £12.60 in UK and £13.85 in London. The real Living Wage is different to the minimum wage. It is independently calculated and is based on the cost of living, and is not a legal requirement – although many companies voluntarily adopt it. Some accreditations, such as The Good Business Charter, have it as one of their requirements.
The employer rate for National Insurance contributions will increase from 13.8% to 15% although businesses with employer National Insurance contribution bills of £100,000 or less in the previous tax year will be able to deduct £10,500 (previously £5,000) from their bill.
For some employers these increases will hit hard and perhaps mean cuts in expenditure elsewhere. However, many appreciate that people are a hugely valuable business asset and will do everything they can to keep jobs despite the wages increases.
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