Minimum wage rises to £12.71 an hour as firms warn of impact. 15 hours ago. Emer Moreau,Business reporterand. Oliver Smith,Business producer. Getty Images. Around 2.7 million people are set to receive a pay rise this week as the national minimum wage goes up by 50p to £12.71 for over 21s.. Workers aged 18-20 will see an 85p rise to £10.85, and under-18s and apprentices will get 45p more to £8 an hour.. Young workers welcomed the rise, but some expressed concern about fewer job opportunities, while businesses said higher wage bills will force them to increase prices or cut staff.. The Low Pay Commission, the government agency which recommended the increases, said previous minimum wage rises for over-21s had “not had a significant negative impact on jobs”.. Minimum wage: Who is getting a pay rise and how much is it?. Ifunanya Ezechukwu, 25, said the rise was a “step in the right direction”.. “Especially with the cost of living being really bad, people need more money so they can actually afford the basics,” she told BBC Newsbeat.. She doesn’t think employers paying staff more will necessarily translate to fewer jobs.. “I feel like they’re probably just going to up the prices of their services, so I don’t think there’ll be less job opportunities,” she says.. “I just feel like some things might get more expensive, which is unfortunate, and then the cycle just continues.”. Alex McCarthy, a university student who works part-time in a pub, says he is feeling “very, very happy” about the rise.. But the 18-year-old says it probably won’t be enough for some of his friends, who are working while living at university but are still struggling to do weekly shops and are having to borrow money off their parents.. Amelia Evans, 18, believes the rise is necessary because “everything is going up in price”. But she is concerned it will limit her job opportunities.. “So far this year I think I’ve done maybe 20 applications, and haven’t got any. I feel like it’s going to impact me even more now.”. From water to council tax: How the bill rises (and one drop) affect you. Spencer Bowman is the managing director of of Mettricks, a chain of four coffee shops in Southampton. He says he would normally be “thrilled” to pay staff more, but “the cost increases have got to be sustainable”.. “There’s nothing that I’d want more than to ensure that my team can earn a really fair amount of money for a fair day’s work. And it’s been one of my long-term ambitions to see hospitality workers, my employees, paid far more.”. But Spencer says his business is being squeezed from every angle – as well as minimum wage, he has had increases in business rates, national insurance, and statutory sick pay. He also expects energy bills to go up because of the war in the Middle East.. “We’re running on a minimum number of staff on shift. We can’t run on fewer people,” he says.. “If something doesn’t give somewhere, we will be closing sites.. “It doesn’t make any sense. Revenue is up. Our cust
