Low Pay Commission Publish National Minimum Wage Recommendations for 2006

The Low Pay Commission today published their National Minimum Wage report for 2006. 

The UK Government has accepted the Commission's recommendations that the adult minimum wage rate should be increased to £5.35, that the Development Rate should increase to £4.45 and that the minimum wage for 16/17 year olds should be increased to £3.30 from October 2006.

Over 1.3 million of the UK's lowest-paid workers will see their wages increase in October as a result of the increases.

The outgoing Chairman of the Low Pay Commission, Lord Turner, said:

"In our 2005 Report, we made recommendations for October 2005 and October 2006 with a proviso that we should review the October 2006 rate in January 2006 to see whether economic conditions had changed in a way that would make us revise our recommendation.

"Our economic review did reveal some factors which could argue for a slight reduction in the October 2006 increase, but the Commission concluded that the evidence of changed economic conditions was insufficient to justify recommending a reduction in the proposed 2006 increases.  However, we did conclude that the phase in which the Commission was committed to increases in the minimum wage above average earnings was now complete.  Looking forward, the Commission will start with no presumption that further increases above average earnings are required."

The 2006 Report also looks at issues relating to 16-17 year olds, salary sacrifice schemes and the accommodation offset and our recommendations.