Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne today visited a branch of Morrisons – a major youth employer – to highlight the government’s action to make it cheaper for businesses to employ young people.
Employing almost 15,500 people under 21 years old, the supermarket chain will greatly benefit from the Autumn Statement decision to scrap the tax on employees’ earnings.
As the economy recovers, this government wants to make sure that young people are not left behind.
Abolishing the tax will not only reduce the cost of employing young people, it is also an incentive for businesses to consider taking on more under 21s – providing valuable employment opportunities.
Visiting the new Watford store, George Osborne said:
Today I’ve launched our campaign to draw attention to the plan to scrap the jobs tax for young people. This will help companies like Morrisons who already have an excellent record in employing under 21s, and I hope it will encourage many others to take on more young recruits.
We want to give young people the very best possible chance of getting a job and this measure shows we are backing business to support hardworking people.
Getting rid of employer national insurance on under 21s comes on top of the action the government has already taken to increase the employer NICs threshold and offer a £2,000 employment allowance to every business.
In the Autumn Statement, the Chancellor announced that national insurance contributions would be abolished for young people earning up to the Upper Earnings Limit - £42, 285 per annum in 2015-16.
This forms part of wider plans to make sure that young people are supported and provided with opportunities to improve their basic skills.
It also follows the April 2011 increase in the employer NICs threshold by nearly £1,100 and the Budget 2013 announcement that from April 2014, the government will introduce an employment allowance. As a result, businesses will see their employer NICs bill reduced by up to £2,000.