The Prime Minister has announced that the adult minimum wage will be rising to $22.70 per hour from 1 April 2023, which will also effect training and starting-out wages
This is an increase of $1.50 per hour from the current hourly rate of $21.20 and aligns with the 7.2% rate of Consumer Price Index inflation in the year ended December 2022.
The training and starting-out minimum wages will also both increase to $18.16 per hour, remaining at 80% of the adult minimum wage. This is a rise from the current minimum rate of $16.96 per hour.
For an employee who works 40 hours a week, the minimum wage rise to $22.70 per hour means they’ll earn an extra $60 each week before tax.
Around 222,900 New Zealand workers currently paid between the current and new minimum wage rates will get an increase in their pay packets as a result of the change in the minimum wage.
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins says the impact on inflation is negligible.
“MBIE estimates that an increase of 7 per cent in the minimum wage will have only a minor inflationary impact of 0.1% on the wages portion of GDP.
“We’ve tried to find the right balance. Analysis from MBIE that fed into our decision suggests this increase is unlikely to have a significant impact on unemployment, because it is broadly in line with existing average wage growth across the economy.”
The Government will review the minimum wage rate again later this year.
