NMW to increase again next year to £12.21 ph.

[ZoeZee]

If you’ve not had a pay rise this year, despite bringing it up to your employer, and now there’s set to be another 6% NMW increase next year (which is fantastic, don’t get me wrong) the pay gap is narrowing ever more between skilled/unskilled employees.

Skilled and those with MANY years of experience, might as ditch their responsible/stressful jobs (which often keep you awake at night) and look for something that doesn’t have the added responsibility?

Almost 20 years experience means nothing to some employers! AIBU?

Any employers who have a view on this increase, please let me know how this might affect you and your staff.

I'll keep pointing out that not everyone on min wage is entitled to any benefits

People seem to think this in real life as well that somehow I get topped up. My wage is my wage, there's nothing else

😂I am aware, however, the point I was making is that I do not have to worry about the potential for that error, as I do not have that added responsibility.
Btw, there are many "close calls" due to the lack of competency of mainly (not exclusively) agency sn

Lots of people are (probably deliberately) misinterpreting OP. She's not saying that people on MW shouldn't get an increase, just if they are then everyone else should also get a commensurate pay increase, because after several years of this not happening, the difference between "unskilled" MW work (which is not to say it's easy or undemanding or that people don't recognise MW jobs are usually essential) and skilled jobs that have required a lot of training and incur a lot of responsibility and stress is getting very low, to the extent that at some point people probably will stop wanting to do those roles.

Someone working in a restaurant or behind a bar or as a cashier in tesco or a hairdressing assistant or a shelf stacker in home bargains etc - which don't get me wrong, having done them CAN be physically exhausting jobs with rude customers, but can also, depending on the shift and employer, be an absolute doss, will earn £25,396 a year with the pay increase (based on a 40 hour working week). As just one example a paramedic's salary starts at £28,407.

Do you really think those jobs are comparable to the extent the paramedic, someone who literally has people's lives in their hands every single shift, will, after tax and NI take home approximately £1.16 an hour more? Same for a police officer.

Maybe lots of people have already responded to you but I work for a domestic abuse charity. Not even our CEO is on over £20ph. Our practitioners absolutely stay up at night worrying about their clients.

I was talking to a small business owner a couple of weeks ago. They are struggling to break even atm. Really sucessful business but they have been hit with loads of wage related increases.

They have 5 members of staff. In the last two years its added £2000 a month to their costs.

They are probably currently paying themselves LESS than minimum wage when they add up all the hours they put in.

Their comment before today was that it was like government was trying to kill small businesses. And now they have another wage increase to account for.

They can only raise their prices a certain amount before customers stop buying as much. So there's a risk to that and it remains to be seen how far they could do that any remain viable.

This could well mean the owners are forced to put even more hours in themselves and to cut a member of staff. Or they may even eventually go under, if they have a bad run of figures. Putting 5 people out of work.

The owners treat the staff really well and really look after them and care for them. They are not taking the piss or exploiting them.

There really needs to be some sort of small business relief to mitigate some of this, because the effect could well be devastating.

This is a far cry from your massive multinational who is able to offshore. Its THAT which needs much closer scrunity.

I assume your single. I agree single people really do get screwed over. More then anyone

Yes I generalised a bit (took a punt that OP wasn’t doing something this worthy).

Thanks for what you do, it’s really important.

Omg they are the worst and usually earning the most

Some nasty buggers on here tonight isn't there ?
Or maybe just frightened of having to pay a decent wage, £12 and hour ? I was on £9 as a student at a leisure centre in 1985, had to join the union though (remember them) think it cost about £1.50 a month.

In that case I'm going to "very surprise" you and tell you that a paramedic's starting salary of £28,407 works out as £13.63 an hour gross and £11.52 net. And it's even less if they are paying back a student loan. A police officer's starting salary is about the same. You don't think that those jobs, where responsibility for other people's (and your own) lives can literally be at risk every shift, cause people to lose sleep stressing about them at night?

Where do you get the idea this is a labour policy?
If you really want to talk about anti business parties you can thank the tories for raising the marginal corporation tax rate from 19 to 25%!

The minimum wage was raised last year to 2/3 of UK median wage because that's what the low pay commission told the (last) tory government to do.

This is a case of "independent body makes recommendation which is likely to be approved in the budget" like the minimum wage has been for the last decade

The extra thing that has happened now is that the minimum wage ( again was set by the Tories at 2/3 of the UK median wage), and reached that this year.

Labour have changed this by asking the low pay commission to take the cost of living into account in future, and current predictions are that it will increase further. [Source.](https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2024-07-30/H
LWS44)

I don't pay my staff minimum wage, experience deserves decent pay. And I can pay my staff more, but my prices will have to go up in order to compensate, which means I will sell less, so there will be less in the pot to pay staff. Fair enough if I could cut back on my shareholder pay or how much my CEO earns, but wait, I'm a single business owner, I don't have either of those things, and leading a basic lifestyle as it is. Perhaps I could pay less VAT instead? Oh wait, nope. I know, I'll just earn £6 an hour so I can employ other people because that appears to be what people think is the answer.
Tell you what, run a small business, then come at me with your comments. Why is there this thing about business owners rolling in dosh?! It's an automatic assumption. Business owner = rich and not paying their fair taxes.

Ain't that the truth😫

How many closed when the NMW rose last time?
We can’t continue a system where the tax payer subsidises business owners.

Those saying a business isn't a business unless they pay £12 and hour.

How much are you willing to pay for a coffee?

How much are you willing to pay for a nursery place?

Our food prices have been historically low, they will all go up if everyone is earning an increased wage.

How much would you want as supervisor, team leader, manager?

Do you think the train drivers and junior doctors are going to be happy with their pay rise now the lowest has jumped?

MN hates big businesses and share holders, but there are so many small businesses in that make a living and not a fortune.

Exactly. My job is high stress, keeps me up at night and lots of responsibility. I’m also degree educated with years and years of experience.

Still only earn NMW though, teaching is a vocation so they say . .

You only pay employees £60k per year because you can afford that. Ultimately you can choose to pay less, though that might mean you can't hire the best staff and be competitive commercially as a result. But you do ultimately have a choice. And you can increase wages in line with profits/performance - or equally freeze them.

The trouble for a small business employer is how crucial staff are to them and how they have no choice over these wage increases. They are at the mercy of policy makers rather than making rises and wage decisions based on the commercial viability of the business.

The compulsory part of the NMW is the problematic bit. Its not a rise itself as such. Its the fact its out of the control of the business managers.

29 pubs are closing a week. My relative pays himself 1000 pounds a month from the business. He can't afford to pay pot washers 12 an hour ( plus 12% holiday pay) Fact.

Well you can waved goodbye to a lot of nurseries and care companies
people can barely afford them now let alone when they increase there rates to accommodate NMW

Pubs are currently going out of business at an alarming rate.

Nurseries are also facing similar problems.

The numbers going out of business is something that has been well publicised in the press over the last couple of years.

They shouldn't.

Housing benefit has inflated rents.

As a pp said we need to look at housing costs.

Without that nothing will change.

The blinkered view on MN of business owners is mind-blowing.