A Quarter Of Businesses Put A Hold On Any Promotions In Order To Afford National Living Wage
A quarter of UK small businesses have put a hold on any employee promotions or pay rises because they can’t afford the national living wage – according to a report by XpertHR. The survey of 212 businesses and 541,340 employees has revealed that 30% of firms had to increase pay for at last some workers in April 2016 – when the minimum wage officially rose from £6.70 to £7.20. At the time of its introduction, workers eligible for the national living wage (who were previously on the national minimum wage for workers aged 21 and over) would have seen their pay increase from £6.70 to £7.20 an hour, an increase of approximately 7.5%. It’s suggested that many businesses failed to plan adequately, or even expect, the rise – and it now appears business owners are taking their financial frustrations... »