TUC wants boost in minimum wage
The influential Trade Union Congress has called for a 29% increase in the national minimum wage level, far higher than government proposals.
Links: New minimum wage – no cause for pessimism
The TUC wants the minimum wage to rise from £4.10 per hour to between £5 and £5.30 per hour by Autumn 2004, dwarfing the government’s 10p per hour increase planned for October this year.
It also called for the abolishment of the lower minimum wage for 18 to 21-year-olds.
According to reports in the press, such an increase in the NMW would be a risky experiment with the UK’s labour market with risks of job losses of paramount concern.