Lidl, the German discount chain, has announced that it will increase entry-level hourly wages from £12.40 to £12.75, affecting around 28,000 of its employees in the UK. The pay increase tops rivals, Aldi and Sainsbury’s, whose planned raises for March will fall below Lidl’s new pay rates. The minimum wage will increase in April, and many retailers have warned that combined with rises in employer National Insurance Contributions, the changes could lead to higher prices, store closures and job losses. Lidl employs over 35,000 people across the UK, in more than 970 stores and 14 warehouses.
Lidl’s announcement follows Aldi, who recently raised store assistant pay rates to £12.71 per hour nationally, and higher rates in London. Sainsbury’s, who announced that it would raise wages to £12.45 per hour in March, before another raise to £12.60, announced it would cut 3,000 jobs and shut down its restaurants and counters. The government has defended the tax rises as necessary to maintain public services. The Treasury has stated that over half of employers will either see no change or a cut in their NI bills due to exemptions for smaller businesses.
KPMG and the Recruitment and Employment Confederation conducted a survey of the job market, which indicated that delays in recruitment of permanent workers have continued into February, as uncertainty over how the economy is performing has led to a “wait and see” approach. Neil Carberry, REC Chief Executive, said, “difficulty navigating significant upcoming tax rises and little progress on the practicalities of a costly new approach to employment rights are all acting as brakes on progress
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