The Designer's Block

From 1 October 2009, new national minimum wage (NMW) rates will come into force. The NMW applies to nearly all workers and sets hourly rates below which you must not allow pay to fall.

For pay reference periods beginning on or after 1 October 2009, you will have to pay all eligible workers the following:

• £5.80 an hour to workers aged 22 and above
• £4.83 an hour to workers aged 18-21
• £3.57 an hour to workers aged below 18 who are no longer of compulsory school age

The daily accommodation offset

You will be able to offset from the NMW an amount of £4.51 per day for each day that you provide a worker with living accommodation.

Ineligibility for the NMW for those taking part in certain EC programmes

You will not have to pay the NMW to someone undertaking a work placement as part of the European Community Erasmus Programme or Comenius Programme in respect of work they do as part of either of the schemes.

Download guidance on the national minimum wage regulations from the Office of Public Sector Information (OPSI) website (PDF, 303K)