Head office jobs more likely to face axe than shop floor following national living wage rises

New research has found that those working in head office are more likely to lose their jobs as the result of an increase to the national living wage.

Research by Foot Anstey found that 52% of companies would rather keep front line staff and make cuts to head office headcount.

On 1 April this year, the national living wage for over 25s rose from £7.50 to £7.83 per hour, a rise directly affecting around two million low-paid workers.

Foot Anstey’s head of retail Patrick Howarth told Retail Sector: “It’s not what we expected, but when you look deeper into the research the reason becomes clearer.

“The abundance of buying platforms means more staff than ever are directly engaged in the business of creating a customer experience which reflects the brand. Business is seeing that as the key differentiator, and know front-line employees are essential to delivering it.”

He added: “What that means is headcount pressures are more likely to be felt elsewhere, namely head office rather than on the front-line. We are talking about the national living wage here, not rent or competition from online which come with their own challenges.”

Further research by the company discovered a 50/50 split when asking company bosses whether they were willing to adapt to modern workers desire for ‘flexible working’.