I am ashamed to say that I pay my showroom staff NMW, not by choice, but necessity as a new business we havent made enough to raise them to a resonable level. Luckily these are mums who are part time workers and so arent solely responsible for supporting their family. As an employer I can either give them hours or pay. If I raise the pay I have to cut the hours, my staff understand the problem and appreciate my support for them through the pandemic.
To put everything into perspective, I have not paid myself anything and have not taken money out of the business. I have had to live on my recently cashed in pension benefit.
Not all employers who pay NMW are ripping off the staff members, some of us are trying to provide employment opportunities and will raise pay and hours when the opportunity arises.