One million UK workers to benefit from the hourly rise, which is effective from today.
According to the Trades Union Congress (TUC) the wage increase from £5.52 to £5.73 an hour will also help to reduce the gap in pay between men and women in the workplace.
In fact, two thirds of workers who stand to gain from the increase are women.

The rise will save the taxpayer an extra £245m in reduced payments of in-work benefits.

The latest increase is the ninth since the minimum wage was first introduced in 1998. Since the legislation, the rate has increased 59%, compared with a 44.2% growth in average earnings.

Earlier this year, the TUC's Commission on Vulnerable Employment revealed that a significant number of employers are illegally paying less than the national minimum wage. As a result, the TUC has renewed its call for tougher penalties to deter minimum wage cheats.

TUC general secretary Brendan Barber commented on the increase: "[It] will help thousands of families but the low-paid face a high inflation rate as they spend a much greater proportion of their income on food and energy where prices have rocketed.

He added: "It is entirely predictable that some employer groups will say that the minimum wage increase will threaten jobs, yet it has helped millions without significant job losses. The Low Pay Commission should robustly reject employer scare-mongering and recognise the higher inflation faced by the low paid when it shortly sets next year's increase."