The minimum wage is being blamed for a rise in unemployment in the retail sector and it is claimed that wage bills rose by £1.2bn last year.
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) says that 78,000 jobs were lost in the sector last year, and the next rise on October 1 will add a further £1.5bn to retailers’ costs.
The BRC data, calculated from retailers responses, has led the organisation to say that the sector is at ‘tipping point’, and it is calling on the Low Pay Commission, who calculate the minimum wage, to reassess their findings.
The group are also asking for a two-year moratorium on the minimum wage in order to assess the impact on the sector.
Kevin Hawkins, director general of the BRC, said: “Retailers tell us they are being expected to find £2.7bn extra for wages over just two years.
“With other costs, including energy prices, rent, rates and service charges shooting up, it's no surprise so many retailers are cutting staffing costs by employing fewer people.”
However Brendan Barber, General Secretary of the TUC, has slammed the BRC’s request and says that the group are simply wrong.
He said: “Every time they are asked members of the British Retail Consortium predict that an increase in the minimum wage will cause massive job losses and every time they are proven wrong.
“The Low Pay Commission should ignore the inaccurate misfortune telling of employer surveys and focus on the facts.”
© Crimson Business Ltd 2006
