Living Wage rate increase

02 November 2015

The UK Living Wage rate has increased by 40p to £8.25 per hour, higher than the National Minimum Wage rate of £6.70 per hour, and also the new National Living Wage rate for over 25s of £7.20 per hour that comes into force on 1 April 2016.

The London Living Wage rate also sees an increase – up by 25p to £9.40 per hour. The rates are calculated independently and based on the cost of living as opposed to median earnings, which the Low Pay Commission use to calculate the National Minimum Wage and the new National Living Wage.

Approximately 68,000 staff that are employees of the accredited businesses that commit to paying all their staff, including sub-contracted teams working on their premises, at least the Living Wage, will see a pay rise.

There are now more than 2,000 accredited Living Wage employers across the UK. This doubles the number of accredited businesses from November 2014.

The Living Wage Foundation has launched an online interactive map as part of the Living Wage People’s Movement, detailing for the first time, all the accredited businesses and their branches that pay their staff at least the Living Wage, so consumers and businesses can easily search for a Living Wage accredited employer to do business with or buy from.

For all the latest news on ‘minimum wages’, see the National Minimum Wage section of our Policy News Journal.