April is here, and with it comes the annual national minimum wage increase, this is the largest increase to the national minimum wage that the country has seen in over a decade. It will also benefit almost 3 million people in the UK and on average would add around £1,800.00 to people’s annual salary.

What is National Minimum Wage?

This is the lowest renumeration that a company can legally pay its employees. The minimum wage criteria in the UK is most commonly seen broken down by age categories (although it can vary between other things such as region, job sector etc.) but this time the increase has seen a significant change for 21 year olds, as they’ve been grouped together with the highest hourly rate pay bracket.

For reference, outlined below are the new hourly pay rates as of 1st April 2024:

21 years +                         £11.44 per hour

18 – 20 years old            £8.60 per hour

Under 18 years                £6.40 per hour

Apprentice                        £6.40 per hour