One Year On -- LPC Submission September 2005 Print E-mail
Written by Union Ideas Network (UIN)   
Thursday, 09 March 2006
In 2005 the Low Pay Commssion carried out a review of the minimum wage for teenage workers, set for the first time in October 2004. The Commission investigated whether the £3.00 an hour minimum rate had improved or damaged young workers’ education and employment prospects, with a view to setting the rate for October 2006.

UNISON’s submission to the Low Pay Commission UNISON’s submission to the Low Pay Commission One Year On: 16 and 17 year olds and the minimum wage, argued strongly that pay should based on the ‘rate for the job’, not on age. Evidence showed that most young people were working for large firms who could well afford the increase. In fact, most jobs already paid significantly more than the £3.00 rate for 16 and 17 year olds.

The submission also provided evidence of serious abuses of the Modern Apprenticeship exemptions. Apprentices doing more than full-time jobs, with full adult responsibilities, were being paid the equivalent of £2.75 an hour. Even when training meets the standards set, the lack of a proper wage created hardship for young people trying to support themselves. This contributed to a  completion rate for Modern Apprenticeships of less than 30%.

UNISON's submission called for the the abolition of age-related minimum wage rages and the coverage of Modern Apprenticeships by minimum wage regulations.

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