Aldi gives workers ANOTHER pay rise as discount retailer hikes its minimum wage to £13-an-hour
The grocery chain, which has held the crown of Britain's best paying supermarket employer, claims to be the first to introduce the new minimum rate.
Store assistants will be paid at least £13 an hour nationwide from September 1 - up from a current £12.75.
This rises to £14.33 an hour for workers within the M25 to counter the additional costs associated with living in the capital.
Based on the length of service, Aldi store assistants could see their pay jump to £13.93 nationally, and to £14.64 within the M25.
Giles Hurley, chief executive of Aldi UK and Ireland, said: 'Our people are the driving force behind our success across the UK.
'This latest investment in pay is a reflection of their hard work and the incredible contribution they make every single day.
'We're proud to remain the UK's highest-paying supermarket and will continue to support our colleagues in every way we can.'
It comes after Chancellor Rachel Reeves raised the the UK national minimum wage to £12.21 an hour in April for workers over the age of 21.
However, Aldi workers also received a pay increase in January when the supermarket raised its minimum hourly rate to £12.71, up from the previous £12.40.
The move put its staff on better pay than those working at their competitors, including upmarket shops like Waitrose and M&S.
Other supermarkets have raised their bottom rates for thousands of shop workers in recent months to bring it above the national minimum.
Tesco store workers are set to benefit from minimum hourly rates rising to £12.64 an hour from the end of August, having risen to £12.45 from March 30.
For Sainsbury's and Argos workers, the national minimum hourly rate will rise to £12.60 in August, having increased to £12 in March.
Meanwhile Waitrose workers are paid a minimum of £12.40 an hour and staff at M&S are paid at least £12.60 an hour.
Rival German discounter Lidl, earlier this year, increased hourly pay for thousands of workers to £12.75 an hour across the UK.
The wage increase was part of a near-£15 million investment into pay by Lidl, who employ more than 35,000 people across the UK.
Chief People Officer at Lidl, said: 'We're proud to offer leading pay rates in the sector, while fostering a culture of opportunity and inclusion that helps our teams thrive.
'As we continue to grow, investing in our people remains at the heart of what we do.'
Discounters like Aldi and Lidl can likely afford the pay rises because they spend very little on anything else.
They undercut rivals by adopting fiercely stringent business practices - from deploying stock onto the floor on its pallets through to minimising the amount spent on advertising.
Their brutal efficiency, and dependency on an almost exclusive range of own-name products, means prices are kept low compared to rivals.
But this can also land discounters in trouble - particularly when they sail too close to the wind when creating their own brands 'inspired' by the real deal.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
12 minutes ago
- The Sun
Keir Starmer paves way for tax hikes this autumn putting damper on interest rate cut
SIR Keir Starmer has paved the way for tax hikes this autumn — putting a damper on today's expected interest rate cut. The Prime Minister failed to explicitly rule out increases to income tax or National Insurance in the Budget to plug a multi-billion-pound black hole. His refusal to reaffirm manifesto commitments comes as experts warn an eye-watering £50billion is needed just to maintain Chancellor Rachel Reeves ' £9.9billion financial buffer. Speaking on a visit to Milton Keynes, Sir Keir said: 'In the autumn, we'll get the full forecast and obviously set out our Budget. 'The focus will be on living standards, so that we will build on what we've done in the first year of this government. 'We've stabilised the economy. "That means interest rates have been cut now four times. "For anybody on a mortgage, that makes a huge difference on a monthly basis to how much they pay.' No10 tried to play down the comments, saying the Government remains committed to its manifesto by not raising taxes on working people. But the National Institute of Economic and Social Research has said the Chancellor is likely to be forced into raising taxes and cutting spending just to meet the massive shortfall. Despite the economic gloom, homeowners are set to receive a boost from the Bank of England today. Experts predict bank chiefs will cut i nterest rates by 0.25 per cent, even though inflation is stubbornly high and growth weak. Raising taxes will kill off growth, Reeves warned as she pledges to rip up business red tape 1 TOWN HALL CASH ALERT ONE in four English town halls will lose money under Labour's shake-up to council funding, experts warn. Areas like inner London face risking cash to go to services, while the East Midlands and Yorkshire are set for the biggest cash windfalls. The Institute for Fiscal Studies, said changes will 'sting' for councils set to lose out. Labour's changes, still being consulted on, are due to come into effect next year.
Daily Mail
14 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Rate fillip for dismal housing: Reeves must ring the changes to get Britain building, says ALEX BRUMMER
During the run-up to the July 2024 election, economic journalists were invited along for an informal chat with the future Chancellor Rachel Reeves. She argued that growth would be a priority for a Labour government and a key part of the programme would be to get Britain building again. The UK has been poor at delivering infrastructure and in the past housing targets have been hard to meet. Tearing up planning rules was always going to be difficult because of Britain's long history of Nimbyism. More than a year into power, and with reforms to planning rules falling into place, brisk progress was to be expected. But the S&P report from UK construction managers for July doesn't offer optimism. It shows the steepest fall in activity since May 2020. The biggest drop came from residential, putting the Government's target of building 1.5m homes in this Parliament in jeopardy. Construction firms cited site delays, fewer new orders and weak consumer confidence as factors. We shouldn't be surprised. Interest rates have proved sticky despite four decreases since Labour took office. The Bank of England is expected to offer a quarter of a percentage point reduction to 4 per cent today. Bad tax policy has played a part. Employment costs are up because of the employers' National Insurance Contributions rise. And the abolition of tax relief on stamp duty at the bottom rung of the ladder makes the aspiration to be part of a property-owning democracy harder. To add to the woes of those seeking a construction revolution, former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has joined the Nimbys – he objects to Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner giving permission to four councils to build over allotments. That's bad for working people, for homegrown produce and the nation's health. Another unforced error. America first The fascinating aspect of commodity trader and miner Glencore's decision to stick with a London listing is its reasoning. Moving to New York, the favoured option, involved 'significant costs'. Its chief executive Gary Nagle might also have pointed out that, with some rare exceptions such as smart chip maker Arm and building group CRH, American investors have not greeted the British arrivals with hosannas. Nagle also rued the fact that there was no certainty that £36billion Glencore would be granted entry to the S&P 500 because of coolness to foreigners. The loss of Glencore would have been serious for London, with its strong history of hosting natural resources companies. BHP retreated to Sydney and if activists had their way Rio Tinto might have done the same. Glencore would have been a less significant departure than AstraZeneca or Shell, both of which have flirted with the idea. Not all is green on the other side of the Atlantic, where AstraZeneca is vowing to invest £37billion. Overnight, the US health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr halted production of mRNA vaccines on a whim. Indeed, Astra's first-to-market Covid jab was slow to be approved in the US, where 'America first' vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna were preferred. It is not just US President Donald Trump and the Republicans who willingly bash overseas investors. President Barack Obama humiliated oil giant BP over the Deepwater Horizon explosion in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010 – leading to tens of billions of pounds of losses for UK investors. Glencore's vote of confidence in Britain might be seen by cynics as a distraction from a disappointing performance in the first half. The miner is responding with a pledge to cut $1billion in costs. Never underestimate the odds of it roaring back on robust trading operations. Oven ready It was predictable that supermarket Morrisons would have to jettison assets to pay down the debt it acquired when it fell under the private ownership of Clayton, Dubilier & Rice in 2023. That is unlikely to be enough in a highly competitive grocery market. Prices are generally higher than at rivals and it may require a fresh look at costly specialist counters and whether the vertical model, from farm to customer, is sustainable. That would be a pity.
Scottish Sun
an hour ago
- Scottish Sun
Argos slashes the price on back to school must-haves and prices start from £3
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) ARGOS has slashed the price of some of its must-have back to school items, with prices starting from as little as £3. The retailer is offering 25% off selected back to school products, including backpacks, lunch bags, water bottles and stationary. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 2 The Smash Strawberry Backpack in pink is reduced to just £8 from £12 2 A Lego stationary set is reduced to £6 from £8 You can also pick up boys' and girls' school uniforms at Argos ahead of the start of the new term in September. The new offers include a Smash Strawberry Backpack in pink, reduced to just £8 from £12, and a Smash Yellow Stainless Steel Sipper 1l Water Bottle reduced to £10.50 from £14. Wicked Hydra Travel Mugs are reduced to £13.50 from £18, while Bluey and Spiderman lunch bags are reduced to £7.50 from £10. A Lego stationary set is reduced to £6 from £8, while 12-pack of Sharpie S-Note Highlighters are on sale for £7.50 from £10. There's also a gadget on sale that's perfect for parents who want to make sure their children's belongings don't get lost during term time. Dymo LT200B Letra Tag Label Printer is now £36.50, rather than £50. The Casio FX-991CW Scientific Calculator is also on sale for £25.50, down from £34. Meanwhile, Argos' school uniform range starts from just £3 for a 2-pack of Unisex Polo Shirts. Its 2-pack of red knitted cardigans start from £8, while its pleated skirts and trousers are £7 each for a 2-pack. The offers are available now on the Argos website and in stores, many of which can be found inside Sainsbury's stores. Shoppers who order by 5pm can receive their items by 10pm on the same day with the retailer's Fast Track same-day delivery. Other back to school offers Argos isn't the only retailer where you can bag some great back to school offers. Lidl last month launched a school uniform bundle for just £5, which includes two polo shirts, sweatshirts and trousers to choose from. Singular items can also be bought for cheap, with a sweatshirt going for just £1.50, and trousers, shirts, skirts or shorts for £1.75 during the sale. Lidl also offers a price-match promise, saying: "If you see a cheaper deal elsewhere, we'll match it." Aldi is also offering a £5 school uniform bundle this summer, which includes two polo shirts, a sweatshirt or cardigan, and a choice of trousers, skirt or cargo shorts – with individual items starting from just £1.50. Meanwhile, it's bad news for M&S shoppers as the retailer confirmed it would not be offering its usual 20% off sale on school uniforms this summer. The decision came after a cyber incident forced the company to suspend online operations for nearly six weeks, resulting in estimated losses of around £300 million. However, it said it had frozen prices on its school uniforms for the fifth year running. Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@ Plus, you can join our Sun Money Chats and Tips Facebook group to share your tips and stories
