Q&A - is the Living Wage really £10.20 p.h?

Q. One of our employees says that the hourly rate for workers who are aged 25 and over has gone up to £10.20 p.h and we are breaking the law by not paying this rate. Is our employee correct?

A. No. It sounds like your employee is confused by changes that have been made to the real Living Wage rate - this is a scheme run by the Living Wage Foundation. In London, the real Living Wage has been increased from £9.75 to £10.20 p.h. and from £8.45 to £8.75 p.h. in the rest of the UK. However, the real Living Wage is entirely voluntary which means that employers don’t have to pay it. However, what you must pay workers aged 25 and over as a minimum is the national living wage rate which is set annually by the government. This is currently £7.50 p.h. and will rise to £7.83 p.h. from April 2018.