A large number of small and medium enterprise owners and managers are not aware that the national minimum wage is due to rise in October.
Research by Bibby Financial Services has found that a third of SMEs are not fully aware of the rise, while 44% of businesses with fewer than four staff members had no idea that the rate was due to increase.
October will see the national minimum wage rise 21p to £5.73 per hour, and the government is to launch an initiative to ensure all SMEs are aware of this.
David Robertson, global chief executive of Bibby Financial Services, said: "At a time when business costs are escalating rapidly as the credit crunch continues to bite and fuel coasts soar, the rise in the national minimum wage could put a significant strain on many small businesses' cash flow."
The British Youth Council (BYC) recently made a case to the Youth Commission for the government to cease age discrimination for the national minimum wage.
SMEs unaware of minimum wage rise
