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How to use Birdie’s National Living Wage Tool

A flexible way to check National Living Wage in the Agency Hub

Sabrina Treitz avatar
Written by Sabrina Treitz
Updated this week

Please note: The following feature is available as part of Birdie’s Starter, Core, Advanced and Plus packages (Also known as Care Management, Rostering & Finance, Premium, Entry and Essentials). Please get in touch if interested in more information on this feature!

Staying compliant with the National Living Wage – the statutory minimum hourly rate set by the UK government – is essential. Birdie gives you a clear view of potential shortfalls and makes it simple to record top-ups, helping you maintain accurate payroll and ensure your carers are paid correctly.

How to review and add National Living Wage top-ups

To see anyone who is at risk of being paid less than the NLW:

  • Go to the Finance tab in the Agency Hub

  • Click Pay runs on the left-hand menu

  • Select View Pay runs on the drop-down menu

Then click on the individual pay run you would like to see. Here, you will see the list of pay data for that particular pay run, including:

  • Name of Carer

  • Pay for Care Delivery

  • Pay for Travel

  • Pay for Waiting time

  • Pay for Mileage

  • Any Extras that have been recorded (i.e. recording an additional payment); and

  • Pay Total

You will also see a Tags section, which includes the Check NLW tag. You will see these tags next to anyone who is at risk of being paid less than NLW.

 Pay run details for period 8 Jan - 15 Jan 2024 showing five caregivers with columns for Care delivery, Travel, Waiting, Mileage, Extras, and Total. Four caregivers (Keeks App, Nadine birdie app, Charlotte French Carer, and Tan Birdie) have teal "Check NLW" buttons in Tags column. Levi Taggart shows negative extras of -£45.00 and Charlotte French Carer shows -£753.85 in extras.

How to get more context around the Check NLW tag

To get more context around why a particular carer has the Check NLW tag next to their name, hover over the question mark icon.

You will then see a pop-up with more information. The calculation takes into consideration: 

  • Current pay

  • Contact time (visits)

  • Travel and waiting time

  • Hourly pay

Most importantly, you will see what the National Living Wage is, what the required pay is and the difference between them.  This will help you add the required top-up amount without any tricky or time-consuming calculations. 

Looking at this example, the carer is currently being paid £47.50 for 4.75 hours (£10.00 per hour). The National Living Wage requires £12.21 per hour, meaning the pay should be £58.00 - creating a shortfall of £10.50 that needs to be topped up to ensure compliance.

Partial pay run view showing Export, Advanced mileage, and Delete pay run buttons at top. Below shows Extras column (£0.00) and Total column (£47.50). Dark tooltip overlay displays National Living Wage calculation: Current pay £47.50, Contact time 4.75 hours, Travel and waiting time 0.00 hours, Hourly pay £10.00, NLW £12.21, Required pay £58.00, Difference £10.50.

Please note: per guidance, waiting time is still considered working time, so it needs to be factored into the NLW calculation. For further guidance, please see this webpage.

This will allow you to make informed decisions on how to handle top-ups, for instance:

  • If you have additional context, you can choose to ignore this warning.

  • Or if you want to add a top-up, we will provide you with the minimum pay needed, and you can then record a payment top-up from there.


How to add a NLW top-up

If you want to add a NLW top-up, click on the paysheet for an individual carer.

Within the paysheet, you can then click Record Payment on the Payments and deductions section.

Here, you will be able to add the NLW top-up by recording it as you would with any other additional payment.

You can give a name for this payment, such as a NLW top-up, and then enter the correct top-up amount. You can also add a description, such as the reason for recording the NLW top-up, and click Save.

 "Record payment" modal dialogue with Category dropdown showing "Top up" selected, Amount field containing "12.50" (£12.50), and Description field with "NLW top-up" entered. Cancel and Save buttons at bottom, with Save button highlighted in teal.

Once you have recorded this NLW top-up, you’ll see this reflected in the Pay Run, under the Extras column in the table.


NLW calculations & FAQ

How is the NLW calculated?

Our NLW equation compares Total hours worked with Total pay. We always define these as:

Total hours worked = care hours + travel hours + waiting hours

Total pay = care pay + travel pay + waiting pay

We also include commuting hours and commute pay where they are clearly called out as "included" in the travel rate card.

FAQ

Are waiting hours included in the NLW calculation?

Waiting hours are always included in the Total hours worked (as per the relevant entry in the HMRC NLW manual). Waiting pay is included in Total pay if the "pay for waiting time" box is ticked.

Are breaks included in the NLW calculation?

No, Breaks are always excluded (as per the relevant HMRC entry here).

Are commutes included in the NLW calculation?

Commuting hours and pay will be included when the travel rate card explicitly indicates they should (as per the relevant HMRC entry here).

Are historical NLW rates supported?

No, this feature does not support historical rates, meaning the new rates effective every April will be used to suggest top-ups regardless of the date of the pay run.

Please note: Pay runs for time frames prior to annual April rate changes may show the flag despite the carer having been paid the previously correct rate. To adjust past pay runs up to April, it is therefore advisable to manually calculate the top-up required to reach the previous minimum wage.


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