{"id":19935,"date":"2020-02-13T12:09:10","date_gmt":"2020-02-13T12:09:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/smh.group\/?p=19935"},"modified":"2023-02-15T13:45:05","modified_gmt":"2023-02-15T13:45:05","slug":"national-living-wage-set-to-outpace-new-state-pension","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/devstagesite.co.uk\/smhgroup\/national-living-wage-set-to-outpace-new-state-pension\/","title":{"rendered":"National Living Wage set to outpace new state pension"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The National\nLiving Wage (NLW) rises by over 6% in April.<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The 6.2% increase to \u00a38.72 an hour equates to \u00a315,870 a year based on a 35-hour week. The substantial rise is not down to inflation \u2013 which ended 2019 at only 1.3% \u2013 but due to a policy of George Osborne\u2019s. <\/strong>When he made the surprise announcement of the NLW in his 2015 Summer Budget, Osborne set a goal for it to match 60% of median earnings by 2020. Sajid Javid, the outgoing Chancellor, had set a revised target of the NLW reaching two thirds of median earnings by 2024. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pushing up minimum earnings is a double-edged sword for the Treasury. It\nought to mean a reduced government outlay on in-work benefits and increased tax\nand NICs income, but it also adds to the government\u2019s costs as an employer,\nplacing pressure on all wages, not just those at the minimum level. What it has\nnot done so far is impact on the cost of state pensions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

State pension equivalence?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

As a result of the Conservative party election win, we know that the\n\u2018Triple Lock\u2019 will continue to apply to the new state pension, with annual\nincreases which are the greatest of:<\/p>\n\n\n\n