Rates effective from 1 April 2024
Below rates are payable per hour
| 21 and over | £11.44 |
| 18 to 20 | £8.60 |
| Under 18 | £6.40 |
| Apprentice | £6.40 |
The hourly rate for the minimum wage depends on your age and whether you’re an apprentice.
You must be at least:
- school leaving age to get the National Minimum Wage
- aged 21 to get the National Living Wage – the minimum wage will still apply for workers aged 20 and under
From 1 April 2024, the National Living Wage will apply if you’re 21 and over. Up until last year to obtain National Living Wage one had to be 23.
Apprentices
Apprentices are entitled to the apprentice rate if they’re either:
- aged under 19
- aged 19 or over and in the first year of their apprenticeship
Apprentices are entitled to the minimum wage for their age if they both:
- are aged 19 or over
- have completed the first year of their apprenticeship
The National Minimum Wage does not apply to company directors unless they have contracts that make them workers as defined in section 54(3) of the National Minimum Wage Act 1998.
If an employer does not pay minimum wage
It’s against the law to pay below the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage or to falsify pay records.
HMRC can also take employers to civil court for not paying the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage. The maximum fine for non-payment is £20,000 per worker. Employers who fail to pay can be named publicly and banned from being a company director for up to 15 years.
Employers can be taken to an employment tribunal or civil court if an employee or worker feels they have:
- not been receiving the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage
- been dismissed or experienced unfair treatment (‘detriment’) because of their right to the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage
- been discriminated against because their age means they are entitled to a higher minimum wage rate
Correct as of 01 December 2023
Obtained from ACAS & GOV.UK