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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