NMW rates

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Here are the NMW hourly rates from 6 April 2020:

• Aged 25 and older: £8.72

• Aged 21-24: £8.20

• Aged 18-20: £6.45

• Aged 16-17: £4.55

There is a separate apprenticeship rate (£4.15: April 2020) for apprentices aged 16-18 and those aged 19 or over in their first year of apprenticeship, after which normal NMW rates based on age apply. The employer can only pay the apprenticeship rate if there is a valid Apprenticeship Agreement.

Accommodation provided by the employer can be included towards the NMW, up to a limit of £8.20 per day (£57.40 a week: April 2020), called the accommodation offset. No other items provided by the employer (for example, uniforms, food and so on) can be included.

The government has said that payments to workers furloughed under the government’s Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) do not breach the NMW even if, as a result of paying 80% of normal wages, the average hourly rate falls below the NMW for the worker’s age. This is on the basis that furloughed employees are not “working”. Furloughed apprentices must continue to be paid at least the appropriate NMW for time spent training. All workers must be paid 100% of their normal wages when they take holiday (including public holidays) while on furlough.

The CJRS is due to end at the end of October 2020.