Aldi has announced a fresh pay increase for its UK workforce, raising wages for more than 28,000 hourly paid employees as the supermarket continues to position itself
as one of Britain’s better-paying grocers.
The UK arm of the German discount retailer said staff will receive a 2.5% pay rise from March, taking the total year-on-year increase to 4.7%, comfortably above the current rate of inflation.
The move comes at a time when wage growth is under close scrutiny from the Bank of England, which is assessing whether easing inflation pressures could allow for further interest rate cuts.
Higher pay rates from March
From March 1, Aldi will lift its starting hourly pay for store assistants to £13.35, up from £13.02 set in September and £12.75 a year ago. Employees working in London will continue to receive higher rates in line with regional cost-of-living differences.
Aldi remains distinctive within the supermarket sector by offering paid breaks to store workers, a benefit not universally provided by rival chains. The company also confirmed it is extending maternity pay, allowing eligible employees to receive 26 weeks at full pay, an improvement on its previous policy.
Minimum wage and inflation context
Britain’s official inflation rate eased to 3.2% in November, down sharply from peaks seen during the cost-of-living crisis. Meanwhile, the government-mandated National Living Wage is set to rise by 4.1% to £12.71 an hour in April, a change that has drawn concern from some employers who warn it could feed through to higher prices.
Aldi’s new pay rates will remain comfortably above the legal minimum, reinforcing its efforts to attract and retain staff in a competitive labour market.
Wider economic signals
The pay announcement comes as new data points to a cooling UK jobs market. A survey of recruiters published this week showed hiring activity slowed in December, although starting salaries for permanent roles continued to rise at a faster pace, suggesting employers are still competing for skilled workers.
As Britain’s fourth-largest supermarket, behind Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Asda, Aldi’s wage decisions are closely watched as a bellwether for pay trends across the retail sector. Photo by Jivee Blau, Wikimedia commons.