17-6-02

“Minimum wage prejudice hits 7,000 Scots” says Barrett

John Barrett MP, Scottish Liberal Democrat MP for Edinburgh West, today unveiled new information which showed how over 7,000 Scottish workers lose out through the Government's policy on the national minimum wage.

The information, which came through answers to parliamentary questions, showed how 1 in 15 of the 110,000 people who benefited from the introduction of the minimum wage were aged 18-21 and thus were only eligible for the reduced rate.

John Barrett MP said:

"Although I welcomed the introduction of the minimum wage, the lower rate for those aged between 18 and 21 was both unfair and unnecessary. It is now clear that, contrary to the scare mongering that had been put out by the Conservatives, a national minimum wage does not deter employers from hiring labour and indeed actually attracts workers into the labour force. That same logic must apply to young workers as well.

"The current system only serves one purpose, to discriminate against 7,000 of Scotland's younger workers, sending them a message that their work is valued less, simply because of their age. Entitling these younger workers to the full minimum wage, as proposed by the Liberal Democrats, would deliver an extra £21 a week into their pay packets.

"Now is the time for the Government to tackle this institutional unfairness and bring in a universal minimum wage and ahead of the expected autumn uprating."

ENDS

Notes to Editors:

* The minimum hourly wage rate for full claimants is currently £3.50 for those aged 18-21 compared with £4.10 for those aged over 21.

* The information was received through the following parliamentary question and answer:

John Barrett (Edinburgh West): To ask the Secretary of State for Trade & Industry, how many people aged (a) between 18 and 21 and (b) over 21 years are receiving the national minimum wage in Scotland, broken down by parliamentary constituency or nearest available area.

Alan Johnson: Estimates for beneficiaries of the National Minimum Wage by parliamentary constituency or nearest area are not available. Around 110,000 people in Scotland stood to benefit from the October 2001 increase in the National Minimum Wage. About 1 in 15 of the people who stood to benefit from the October 2001 increase in the National Minimum Wage in the UK as a whole were aged 18-21.