Minimum Wage 2027: Are Your Temp Rates Ready for April?

If you're supplying 100 temporary workers on the National Living Wage, April's increase could add £1,875 to your weekly gross wage bill. The question is whether your client charge rates are ready to keep pace.

From 1 April 2027, the National Living Wage rises to £13.21 per hour, an increase of 50p for workers aged 21 and over currently earning the minimum rate. For agencies supplying temporary workers into logistics, warehousing, construction or manufacturing, those costs quickly add up. While paying the correct minimum wage is essential, protecting your margins means reviewing what clients pay too.

There's also the operational challenge. Hundreds of assignments, different client agreements, shift premiums and overtime rates all need checking. Leave those changes until April, and your team could face a significant administrative workload. Preparing now means getting rates agreed, configured and ready to take effect before the deadline.

What are the new minimum wage rates for April 2027?

Following the October 2026 Budget, the Government confirmed the following rates, effective from 1 April 2027.

What could the increase cost your temp desk?

For workers aged 21 and over, the increase represents a 3.9% rise in the hourly minimum rate. If client charge rates don't reflect the additional wage and employment costs, the difference could come directly out of your gross profit.

As we explored in our October 2026 Budget update for recruiters, reviewing employment costs and client affordability is an important commercial priority. For temp agencies, the next step is getting the right rates agreed, recorded and ready to take effect.

Protecting your margins starts with reviewing client charge rates

Increasing worker pay where required is a legal obligation. Increasing client charge rates is a commercial conversation best handled before the new costs take effect. Your cost of supply includes more than hourly wages, with employer National Insurance, holiday pay, pension contributions and other applicable costs all affecting profitability.

Not every client will be affected in the same way. An agency supplying warehouse operatives on standard shifts might have relatively straightforward rates, while another supplying drivers across multiple depots could be managing different weekday, weekend, night-shift and overtime rates alongside individual agreements. The challenge is identifying which assignments remain commercially viable after the increase.

Start with the clients and bookings where higher wage costs will have the biggest impact on gross profit. Check existing contracts for rate-review provisions, then prioritise conversations where revised charges need approval. A clear breakdown of the costs gives clients a practical basis for discussion and helps avoid disputes after the new rates take effect.

What happens when you're managing hundreds of different rates?

Consider a temp agency supplying 250 workers across several logistics and manufacturing clients. Each agreement needs reviewing against the new wage costs, but the rate structures and commercial implications can vary considerably.

One agency. Three different client agreements.

Across these contracts, your team needs to identify affected workers, calculate new costs, agree revised client charges and update rate configurations. Add assignments running across April, different age-related wage bands and client-specific terms, and the potential for manual errors increases.

An incorrect pay rate can result in underpayments and worker queries, while an outdated charge rate can reduce your margin. Discrepancies between agreed rates and invoices can also lead to time-consuming corrections. As your temp desk grows, a consistent rate management process becomes increasingly important to keep loyalty with workers and prevent them from going to another agency.

Why scheduling rate changes ahead of time makes a difference

Unlike unexpected changes in client demand, the minimum wage increase has a known implementation date. That gives agencies an opportunity to review agreements, confirm revised charges and configure changes ahead of April, leaving more time to check the details.

With Firefish, agencies can schedule changes to their rate configurations to take effect at the appropriate time, helping operations teams prepare adjustments before the deadline rather than manually updating every affected rate at the last minute. There's still work involved in checking figures and reviewing exceptions, but advance preparation reduces repetitive admin and the risk of errors under pressure.

It also makes rate management less dependent on individual recruiters remembering which client needs an adjustment. When rates are agreed in advance, teams have more time to spot discrepancies before they affect pay or invoicing. Every hour saved on corrections or invoice queries is time that can go towards filling shifts and developing client relationships.

Rate accuracy also helps support compliance

Preparing for April isn't just about margins. Agencies must ensure workers receive the correct statutory minimum wage and meet other applicable pay obligations, which becomes more complicated when workers move between assignments, work different shifts or fall into different age-related minimum wage categories. For an assignment starting in March and continuing into April, the correct minimum wage treatment depends on the relevant pay reference period and applicable rules, rather than simply the booking date.

Accurate rate information and a clear review process help reduce avoidable errors. Scheduled changes can support that preparation, but they don't replace payroll checks, working-time records or compliance reviews. Operations teams must also consider actual hours worked, contractual entitlements and Agency Workers Regulations requirements where applicable.

Five steps to get your temp desk ready before April

A structured approach now can make the transition easier for recruiters, operations teams and clients, while reducing the risk of rushed changes when April arrives.

1. Audit your active assignments. Identify affected workers, including those on assignments continuing beyond 1 April, and check any age-related requirements.
2. Review pay rates, charge rates and margins. Calculate higher wage and employment costs, then flag contracts where profitability may be affected.
3. Agree changes with clients early. Check contractual terms, communicate the cost implications and confirm revised charges where appropriate.
4. Configure and schedule rate changes. Prepare approved adjustments in advance so they can take effect when required, without last-minute manual updates.
5. Check exceptions and compliance requirements. Review assignments crossing April, age-related rates, shift premiums and payroll calculations before and after implementation.

Working through these steps gives your team a clearer picture of the financial impact and helps ensure your desk is operating on the right rates. It also creates a repeatable process for future statutory increases and client rate reviews, rather than rebuilding the same checks every year.

See how to prepare your April rate changes before April arrives

The April 2027 wage increase is confirmed, and temp recruitment agencies now have an opportunity to protect margins, reduce admin and prepare for the operational changes. Reviewing rates early gives you time to agree charges with clients, identify potential margin pressure and avoid rushed adjustments.

Firefish brings temp rate management, shift scheduling and timesheets into connected recruitment workflows, helping agencies maintain better visibility of the information behind their bookings. With the ability to configure and schedule rate changes in advance, your team can prepare for known cost increases while spending less time on repetitive administration and more time filling shifts, supporting clients and growing repeat revenue.

Want to see how scheduled rate changes could work for your agency? Book a Firefish demo and discover how to prepare your temp rates ahead of April, reduce manual admin and keep better control of your margins.