National Minimum Wage to rise this October

Gordon Brown announced today that the National Minimum Wage (NMW) will rise from October.

Adults who receive GBP5.52 an hour will receive GBP5.73, 18-21-year-olds will get a rise of 17p an hour to GBP4.77 and 16-17-year-olds will be paid GBP3.53, up from GBP3.40.

The government said nearly one million low paid employees, two thirds of them women, will benefit from the increase.

The government has also boosted funding for enforcement of the NMW and is planning tough new penalties for rogue employers who underpay staff as part of the Employment Bill, now before the Parliament.

Business Secretary John Hutton said: "The National Minimum Wage remains one of the most important rights introduced by the government in the last decade. Before it was introduced, some workers could expect to be paid as little as 35p an hour; our legislation has ensured that can no longer happen."

"I am proud of the minimum wage; it makes a real difference to the lives of many of our lowest-paid workers and protects them from exploitation. It also creates a level playing field for business and boosts the economy."

When the NMW was launched the main rate was GBP3.60.

New measures which aim to enforce the minimum wage and crack down on rogue employers include a fairer method for dealing with NMW arrears, calculated so that workers do not lose out as a result of underpayment and increasing the maximum penalty for non-payment of the NMW to an unlimited fine. The most serious cases of non-compliance will be tried in a crown court.