Thread by @TheIFS

Labour and the Conservatives both plan to take the minimum wage to a historical high and give the UK one of the highest minimum wages among developed countries.

New #GE2019 analysis, funded by @NuffieldFound: ifs.org.uk/election/2019/…

@NuffieldFound Labour’s policy would mean nearly 30% of private sector employees’ wages would be set directly from Whitehall, while Conservative policy would set 20% of private sector wages.

@NuffieldFound Under Labour policy, 49% of employees aged 21–24, 82% of those aged 18–20 and 94% of those aged 16–17 would be affected by the minimum wage.

There are particular risks to having very high minimum wages for young employees, as many may struggle to find employment at those wages.

@NuffieldFound Around 30% of employees in the North East, North West, Yorkshire and the Humber, East and West Midlands, and Wales would be on the #minimumwage under Labour’s plans.

@NuffieldFound More than half of all employees aged 21 and over in the accommodation and food sector currently earn less than 66% of median hourly wages – the minimum wage proposed by the Conservatives.

64% would be expected to earn less than the £10 an hour proposed by Labour in 2020.

@NuffieldFound It's not the case that the poorest households benefit most from the #minimumwage.

Many minimum-wage workers live with higher-earning household members, and household incomes depend on the hours people work as well as their hourly wages.

Read more: ifs.org.uk/election/2019/…