Tesco, the largest grocery chain in the United Kingdom, has agreed to raise employee wages by 7%, which will be the third pay raise in as few as 10 months.
Over 200,000 employees will gain from the increase in pay to £11.02 per hour outside of London, which takes effect in April.
Staff at supermarkets have been fighting for higher pay, as they have in other sectors, as living expenses are rising at their quickest rate in nearly forty years. .
Asda, Aldi, and Lidl are just a few of the supermarkets that have increased pay.
According to Tesco UK Chief Commercial Officer Jason Tarry, the most recent increase recognized the "incredible work and dedication" of Tesco employees.
We are fully committed to providing them with competitive base pay and unique colleague benefits because we are aware that many of our coworkers have felt the strain of rising costs this year.
The deal's broker, the union Usdaw's national officer Daniel Adams, called it a "significant step forward for pay within Tesco retail.".
He said, "The company continues to respond favorably to the significant pressures our members face.".
Tesco stated that its most recent pay raise represents a 7% increase in base pay and was its "biggest ever investment" in hourly wages.
However, the retailer increased staff pay by about 15% over the previous 10 months, per Usdaw. .
The new rates are applicable to employees of all ages and are higher than the legal minimum wage, or "national living wage," which is currently set at £9 point 50 per hour and will increase to £10 point 42 per hour starting in April for workers age 23 and over.
Additionally, the grocer will pay its employees in the capital at a rate that is equal to or higher than the voluntary Living Wage Foundation rate outside of London, which is £10.90.
It follows similar pay increases at other significant supermarkets, many of which are struggling to hire and keep employees.
- Asda declared earlier this month that it would increase pay for 115,000 employees by 10%, bringing rates to £11.11 per hour. For those who work inside the M25, salaries will also rise.
- In addition to raising wages at its warehouses to at least £13.18 an hour in February, Aldi started paying a minimum of £11 an hour in its stores in January.
- All store and warehouse employees at Lidl now receive entry-level pay of £10.90 per hour.
A month ago, Tesco announced it would eliminate 1,750 team manager positions from its larger stores in addition to other positions.
It declared that 1,800 new, lower paid shift leader positions would manage its shop floors going forward.
