Low Pay Jobs
242 thousand jobs below national minimum wage in United Kingdom
Estimates from the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings show that the number of jobs paid below the national minimum wage in the UK was 242,000 in April 2009, amounting to 0.9 per cent of all jobs in the labour market.
In April 2009 there were three rates for the national minimum wage: one for those aged between 16 and 17 (£3.53 per hour), one for those aged between 18 and 21 (£4.77 per hour) and one for those aged 22 and over (£5.73 per hour).
The number of jobs paid below the national minimum wage were: •14,000 jobs (4.1 per cent) held by those aged 16 to 17, •44,000 jobs (2.6 per cent) held by those aged 18 to 21 and •184,000 jobs (0.8 per cent) held by those aged 22 and over.
People in part-time work were more than twice as likely as people in full-time work to be paid less than minimum wage, with 1.5 per cent of part-time jobs and 0.7 per cent of full-time jobs falling below the minimum wage.
Jobs held by women were more likely to fall below the minimum wage than jobs held by men (1.1 per cent compared with 0.8 per cent). This was due to the greater number of women in part-time jobs.
Estimates for 2008 have been revised down by 14,000 jobs.
It is important to note that these estimates do not measure non-compliance with the national minimum wage legislation. The survey used to provide these estimates does not indicate whether individuals fall into a category that is exempt from the legislation, such as apprentices or new trainees.
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Guide to Measuring Low Pay