The National Living Minimum Wage is increasing: What does this mean for you?

National World - LocalTV

It’s reported that three and a half million low-paid workers are set to see their wages rise from April 1st. This comes as Chancellor Rachel Reeves revealed back in her Autumn Budget, that she would be increasing the National Living Wage.

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00:00It's reported that three and a half million low-paid workers are set to see their wages

00:05rise from April 1st. This comes as Chancellor Rachel Reeves revealed back in her autumn

00:10budget that she would be increasing the national living wage. But what does this mean for you?

00:16So if you're over 21, that means your minimum wage is set to go up by 6.7%. For 18-20-year-olds,

00:23the national minimum wage is rising by 16%. Furthermore, a higher hourly rate, called

00:28the real living wage, which is paid voluntarily by some UK businesses to half a million people

00:33across the UK, is also going up. The government have said that the increase was worth around

00:39£1,400 a year for an eligible full-time worker. The Living Wage Foundation is a charity that

00:46tries to ensure that everyone can earn a wage that meets their everyday needs. It's reported

00:51that despite the huge impact of the living wage movement, there are still 3.5 million

00:57workers across the UK that are in low-paid and insecure work. New research published

01:02earlier this year found that 42% of workers earning below the real living wage have less

01:07than £10 left over after paying for their essentials. The research also found that two

01:13in five workers earning below the real living wage used a food bank in the past year, with

01:1828% of them relying on food banks at least once a month. The foundation reported that

01:23nearly one in six UK jobs paid below the real living wage in 2024. New research shows

01:29that if a quarter of these jobs were given a pay rise to meet the real living wage, it

01:33could put £1.2 billion back into the UK economy. It's reported that major investors in the

01:38UK are further pushing retailers like Next, Marks and Spencers and JD Sports to increase

01:44pay for thousands of workers. This sees individuals and investors encouraging companies to pay

01:50a real living wage to help workers cover necessary household costs. Catherine Howarth,

01:56the chief executive of campaign group Share Action, said the UK's biggest retailers are

02:01failing to support their workers with a real living wage, leaving hundreds of thousands

02:06of people in the sector struggling to make ends meet. Discussing the changes to minimum

02:12wage, the government said that the new rates will help employers continue to hire and train

02:18up young staff, addressing the nearly one million young people not in education, employment

02:24or training.

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