The minimum hourly wage for apprentices will be boosted to £8 next April, the chancellor has announced.
Ahead of tomorrow’s budget, Rachel Reeves tonight revealed the minimum rate on offer to apprentices will rise by 45p, or 6 per cent, from the current £7.55 per hour.
While the wage boost is lower than last year’s 18 per cent hike, it is higher than the current rate of inflation that sits at 3.6 per cent in the year to October.
Reeves will also increase the national minimum wage for 18 to 20-year-olds by 8.5 per cent to £10.85 per hour.
And the national living wage will also rise by 4.1 per cent from £12.21 to £12.71 per hour for workers aged 21 and over.
The rate rises will kick in from April 1, 2026.
Employers have to pay at least the apprentice minimum wage for apprentices aged 16 to 18, and for apprentices aged 19 or over in the first year of their apprenticeship. After their first year, apprentices aged over 19 should receive at least the national minimum wage, or the national living wage, depending on their age.
Reeves is also expected to use her budget tomorrow to confirm freezes on rail fares and NHS prescription charges to ease the cost of living. However, she is also rumoured to be extending a freeze on income tax thresholds once more and capping pension contributions through salary sacrifices to raise government revenue.
Reeves said the changes will benefit “many” young people across the country.
“I know that the cost of living is still the number one issue for working people and that the economy isn’t working well enough for those on the lowest incomes,” she added.
“Too many people are still struggling to make ends meet and that has to change.”
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