Meeting of the Agricultural Wages Board for Northern Ireland on 9 January 2026
Date published:
The Agricultural Wages Board for Northern Ireland met on 9 January 2026 and considered a number of matters including the pay and grading structure of agricultural workers. All of the proposed changes set out below are designed to become effective from 1 April 2026.
Proposed changes:
Grading Structure
The AWB members all agreed to simplify the grading structure by proposing to reduce it from six grades to five, merging the previous Grades 3 and 4 into a single category: Grade 3 - Lead Skilled Agricultural Worker.
Pay, Overtime and Accommodation Rates
The AWB members also approved by majority vote (with Unite registering its opposition) the following proposed changes to pay, overtime and accommodation rates as set out below.
The following rates of pay are proposed from 1 April 2026:
Grade 1 - Agricultural Trainee:
Under 18 - £8.00 per hour
18–20 - £10.85 per hour
21+ - £12.71 per hour
Grade 2 - Agricultural Worker - £13.30 per hour
Grade 3 - Lead Skilled Agricultural Worker - £13.66 per hour
Grade 4 - Agricultural Multi-skilled Worker - £13.89 per hour
Grade 5 - Agricultural Manager - £14.44 per hour
It is also proposed that:
- Overtime will now be paid at the same hourly rate as normal working hours. Other overtime rates will be subject to contractual agreement between the employer/employee.
- Accommodation offset be increased to £60.00 per week.
Should the National Minimum Wage or the National Living Wage, as applicable, become higher than the hourly rates set out above then the hourly or other minimum rate will default to the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage, whichever applies.
Any objections to the above proposals should be sent to:
AWB Secretariat, 1st Floor, Jubilee House, 111 Ballykelly Road, Limavady, BT49 9HO, or via email to CorporateSponsorBranch@daera-ni.gov.uk to arrive no later than 5.00pm on Friday 13 February 2026.
The Board will meet again on 27 February 2026 to consider any objections to the proposals. The Board will make an Order to give effect to the new rates and other amendments which would come into operation on 1 April 2026.
The definitions for the previous grading structure and the qualifications required for each grade (prior to the reduction to five grades) are available here or by contacting the AWB Secretariat 1st Floor, Jubilee House, 111 Ballykelly Road, Limavady, BT49 9HO (Tel: 02877442037, Email: CorporateSponsorBranch@daera-ni.gov.uk).
Updated definitions for the new five-grade structure will be published in due course.
Notes to editors:
- The Agricultural Wages Board (AWB) was established under the terms of the Agricultural Wages (Regulation) (Northern Ireland) Order 1977, to regulate the minimum rates of wages, and other related matters, for workers in agriculture.
- The Board consists of 15 members:
- three members appointed by the Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, one of whom is Chair of the Board;
- six members nominated by the Ulster Farmers' Union as representatives of agricultural employers; and
- six members nominated by Unite the Union as representatives of agricultural workers' interests.
- This Press Release is issued by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs on behalf of the Agricultural Wages Board.
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