The NFU has criticised the outcome of the 2012 Agricultural Wages Board (AWB) negotiations that will result in a weighted 2.6 per cent wage increase for workers across the farming industry.
With England and Wales facing a larger increase in Agriculture Wages Order rates than the 2.5 per cent settlement agreed in Scotland, the NFU doubts whether the UK industry can handle higher rates.
NFU lead negotiator Bob Fiddaman said: "The industry is already struggling to manage higher costs for a range of inputs."
Changes confirmed include a 2.8 per cent rise for grade two workers and above (to £6.96 per hour) and a 1.8 per cent increase for grade one workers. The changes reflect revisions to the National Minimum Wage, that is set to rise to £6.21, by the time the Agricultural Wages Order is applied on October 1.
Fiddaman added: "This is a tough outcome and I am disappointed that we were unable to persuade the AWB of the rising input costs faced by the industry over the past months. The National Minimum Wage increase applicable to other sectors would have been fairer overall, and particularly in view of the difficult growing conditions in the Eastern counties."
NFU chief economist, Phil Bicknell, has urged farmers to take note of the new rates. “Farm businesses employing workers should be aware of the new minimum rates applicable from October. As many of the 40,000 farms employing workers across England and Wales will know, it is local market conditions and competition that increasingly determine actual pay rates rather than the minimums set by the AWB.”
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