Aldi is raising starting pay for its store assistants to £13.35 per hour from March 1, ahead of a national minimum wage increase set to take effect in April. The move is part of a £36 million investment in employee pay and benefits at the UK's fourth largest supermarket chain.
The 33p hourly increase means thousands of Aldi workers will earn 64p more per hour than the new national minimum wage of £12.71 for workers aged 21 and over. Store assistants in London will see their pay rise from £14.35 to £14.71 per hour.
The supermarket is also extending maternity pay to 26 weeks at full pay and raising wages for store apprentices to £12.02 per hour. Aldi employees can potentially earn up to £14.30 per hour nationally and up to £15.03 in London, based on length of service.
Commitment to staff
Giles Hurley, chief executive of Aldi UK and Ireland, said: «Our colleagues are at the heart of everything we do. Their hard work and dedication is what allows us to offer customers the quality, value and service they expect from Aldi. That's why we're making such a significant investment in our promise to never be beaten on pay for our colleagues.»
The German supermarket chain is the only UK grocer to offer paid breaks to all in-store staff, a benefit worth up to £1,470 annually. Aldi employs more than 45,000 people across approximately 1,060 UK stores.
Expansion plans
The retailer reported £1.65 billion in Christmas sales and is accelerating its UK growth with plans to open 80 new stores over the next two years.
Note: This article was created with Artificial Intelligence (AI).
