Retail, hospitality and catering have the most NMW jobs

Jobs paid around the NMW are concentrated in a small number of low-paying occupations. The Low Pay Commission estimates that nearly half (48%) of all minimum wage jobs are in retail, hospitality, and cleaning and maintenance occupations.

Although the number of people paid at the NLW in a particular occupation may be small, this can represent a large proportion of employees in that occupation. For example, there were around 27,000 jobs in hair and beauty occupations paid at the NLW in April 2019, but this represented nearly 35% of people aged 25 and over working in those occupations. The following list shows the sector, number of workers on the NLW and the percentage of the total aged 25 and over in that sector:

• hair and beauty, 27,000 (35%);

• cleaning and maintenance, 203,000 (30%);

• hospitality, 208,000 (29%);

• textiles, 12,000 (25%);

• food processing, 58,000 (21%);

• retail, 261,000 (19%);

• childcare, 46,000 (16%);

• transport, 47,000 (15%);

• social care, 94,000 (14%);

• storage, 50, 000 (14%);

• non-food processing, 45,000 (14%);

• security and enforcement, 26,000 (14%);

• leisure, 22,000 (13%);

• office work, 49,000 (12%);

• agriculture, 13,000 (12%); and

• non low paid sectors, 301,000 (2%).

(Source: National Minimum Wage Statistics, October 2020)