Lidl brings hourly pay rate in line with living wage
More than 19,000 Lidl employees across the UK are set to get a pay rise as the supermarket brings its hourly rate in line with the living wage.
Entry-level pay will rise from £9 to £9.30 per hour in stores outside of London and from £10.55 to £10.75 per hour within the M25 to meet recommendations from the Living Wage Foundation.
Read more: Lidl sales soar as Big Four supermarkets struggle
The government’s National Minimum Wage for over-18s is £6.15, rising to £7.70 for employees aged between 21 and 24, and £8.12 for over 25s.
Lidl said the wage increase, which will come into force in March next year, represents an investment of more than £10m.
Lidl GB chief executive Christian Hartnagel said: “During this time of such uncertainty, we feel fortunate to be able to make this investment in our colleagues, and give them peace of mind with regards to their salary.
“Our hourly paid employees represent over 80 per cent of our entire workforce, and are the absolute backbone of our business.
“It is because of them that we continue to be the fastest growing supermarket, and are able to realise our ambitious expansion plans. This move is, therefore, testament to the unwavering commitment that each and every one of them puts into their work on a daily basis.”
In June, the discount supermarket announced it will spend £500m on opening 40 new stores across London over the next five years, creating 1,500 jobs.
Read more: Lidl ramps up expansion plan with 230 new stores
A proposed Tottenham Court Road store, near Warren Street tube station, will become the company’s most central London location.
The investment also includes a new headquarters in Tolworth, south west London, for the firm’s 800 head office employees.
The company has plans to grow its footprint to 1,000 stores over the next few years as it ramps up competition with the UK’s major supermarkets.