Understanding National Minimum Wage law

Who is entitled and who is exempt?

The vast majority of adult workers in the UK - although not the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man - are entitled to be paid the National Minimum Wage (NMW) provided they are not genuinely self-employed.

For the purposes of calculating NMW entitlement, "adult workers" includes groups such as:

• part-time workers
• casual labourers
• agency workers
• piece workers, including homeworkers

You can read a short guide to the National Minimum Wage on the DTI website.

Workers are not required to have a written contract of employment to be entitled to the NMW and the average pay of workers for their actual pay periods must not fall below the NMW.

The hours for which workers must be paid the NMW depend on the types of work they do. See the page in this guide on the four types of work for more information.

Exemptions
The UK minimum wage is not applicable to certain groups, including:

• the genuinely self-employed
• voluntary workers
• workers who are based permanently outside the UK or who are based in the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man

Subjects covered in this guide

• Introduction
• National Minimum Wage rates
• Who is entitled and who is exempt?
• What is included and not included?
• The four types of work
• Calculating hours worked and paid leave
• Records and reporting - best practice
• Enforcement and penalties
  

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