Lidl GB raised entry-level pay by 50p to 60p per hour for entry-level workers 23 and older and says it is now the “highest paying supermarket in the UK.”
Wages for those workers are increasing from £10.85 to £11.35 within the M25 and £9.50 to £10.10 outside of London. Lidl says the increases, which will affect more than 20,000 colleagues, represent a 6% boost in pay in some cases. Frontline workers already had been given a £200 bonus earlier this year for their efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Our frontline colleagues have worked tirelessly over the past 18 months of the Covid-19 crisis and are integral to our future success,” Christian Härtnagel, Chief Executive Officer at Lidl GB, said. “We have ambitious plans to grow our business across Great Britain, and to do that we need to ensure we attract and look after the best talent at every level of our business. This year we feel incredibly lucky to be in a position as a business to go even further by making this significant investment in our incredible workforce, which will make us the best paying supermarket in the UK.”
Like competitor Aldi, Lidi is pouring a significant investment into stores throughout the UK. It plans to spend some £1.3 billion to reach 1,000 supermarkets in two years.
The total investment by Lidl in its workforce, who will see the raises starting in March 2022, is said to be £18 million. Colleagues receive other perks such as holiday entitlement and a 10% discount when shopping at the discount chain.
“In 2015 we became the first supermarket in the UK to match the rates advocated by the Living Wage Foundation, and we are proud to have consistently increased wages every year since,” Nan Gibson, Chief HR Officer commented. “There is no denying how hard our people work, more so than ever during recent times, and we’re delighted to be able to give our store and distribution centre colleagues the recognition they deserve and look forward to welcoming new colleagues to our teams in the months ahead.”
