UK National Living Wage to rise £1/hour from Apr 2024, 2.7 mn to gain

The almost 10 per cent pay hike, from £10.42 to £11.44 an hour, is the biggest cash increase in the National Living Wage in more than a decade, and fulfils the government’s manifesto pledge to end low pay for those on the National Living Wage, said an official release.

Eligibility for the National Living Wage will also be extended by reducing the age threshold to 21-year-olds for the first time. A 21-year-old will get a 12.4 per cent increase, from £10.18 this year to £11.44 next year, worth almost £2,300 a year for a full-time worker.

Such wage rates for younger workers will also rise, with 18-20-year-olds getting a wage boost to £8.60 per hour—a £1.11 hourly pay bump.

The department for business and trade estimates that 2.7 million workers will directly benefit from the this decision.

“The National Living Wage has helped halve the number of people on low pay since 2010, making sure work always pays. The minimum hourly wage for an apprentice is boosted next year, with an 18-year-old apprentice in an industry like construction seeing their minimum hourly pay increase by over 20 per cent, going from £5.28 to £6.40 an hour,” Hunt said.

The National Living Wage was introduced in 2016 and currently sets the minimum hourly pay a person over the age of 23 earns when working.

ALCHEMPro News Desk (DS)