Originally posted https://professionalbeauty.co.uk/government-pricing-young-people-out-of-work-in-beauty-sector
The National Hair & Beauty Federation (NHBF) is today calling on Government to urgently address the mounting employment cost burden that is preventing hair and beauty businesses from taking on apprentices.
New figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reveal that youth unemployment among 16-24-year-olds has surged to 16.1% – the highest level since early 2015. This is now higher than the EU average for the first time since comparable records began. Overall, UK unemployment stands at 5.2%, its highest level since early 2021.
The hair and beauty sector is people-centric, and contributes £5.8 billion annually to the UK economy, in addition to supporting around 220,000 jobs nationwide. Businesses across the sector want to train the next generation of stylists, therapists and technicians. But right now, many simply cannot afford to.
Caroline Larissey, chief executive of the National Hair & Beauty Federation, explains, “Hair and beauty businesses across the UK would love to take on apprentices. They believe in training from within the sector and in offering young people a career with real skills and real prospects.
“But they are being crushed by a perfect storm of rising employment costs that make every new hire a financial risk they cannot take.
“Government policy is unintentionally shutting young people out of work. You cannot ask small businesses to create apprenticeships while simultaneously increasing the cost of employing them.”
The cost burden on small businesses
Hair and beauty businesses are predominantly micro and small enterprises – often sole traders or owners of salons, barbershops and clinics employing just a handful of staff.
For these businesses, every additional pound of employment cost matters.
Since April 2025, businesses have faced a sharp rise in employment costs driven by higher payroll taxes, rising wage rates and expanded employment rights.
This has been driven by three compounding pressures:
- The increase in employer National Insurance Contributions (NICs) from 13.8% to 15%, alongside a reduction in the NICs Secondary Threshold from £9,100 to £5,000, effective from April 2025
- Significant increases in the National Living Wage, including a 4.1% rise from April 2026
- New obligations introduced through the Employment Rights Act, including strengthened statutory sick pay, day-one rights to paternity and unpaid parental leave, and new requirements around zero-hours working arrangements
For a small salon, barbershop or clinic already operating on tight margins, the prospect of taking on a young apprentice – exactly the kind of entry-level role that gives young people their first foothold in the world of work – has become financially prohibitive
A generation being left behind
The hair and beauty sector has long been a vital entry point for young people, particularly those who thrive in vocational, hands-on environments.
Apprenticeships in hairdressing, barbering, beauty therapy and aesthetics offer structured, earn-as-you-learn pathways that suit school leavers who may not pursue academic routes.
The Government’s own reviews of youth employment cite research showing that a significant proportion of young people not in education, employment or training have never had a job – and that failing to enter work by the mid-twenties can lead to long-term ‘scarring’ effects on lifetime earnings and career prospects.
The NHBF believes that hair and beauty apprenticeships could be a significant part of the solution – but only if Government policy creates the conditions that make it viable for businesses to offer them.
NHBF calls on government to act
The NHBF is urging the Government to:
- Review the employer NICs threshold as it applies to apprentice wages, to reduce the upfront cost of taking on a young person in training
- Ensure the £1.5bn youth employment and skills funding reaches micro and small businesses in sectors like hair and beauty, where apprenticeships are most impactful.
- Pursue meaningful VAT reform for the hair and beauty sector, which would free up cashflow and enable businesses to invest in people.
- Engage directly with the NHBF and the hair and beauty sector through its Respect Our Sector campaign to understand the real barriers to apprenticeship growth.
