British retailer M&S will raise the salary of more than 40,000 customer assistants by 7%, in a bid to help with the cost of living crisis.
Starting from April, the hourly pay will jump from £10.20 to £10.90, an increase well ahead of the National Living Wage. Customer assistants in London will receive an hourly pay increase too, from £11.25 to £12.05.
The hourly pay increase comes after the retailer announced on Monday (27 February) a £57m investment in front line-colleague pay. Monday’s announcement comes after another substantive investment of £46.5m during the 22/23 financial year.
As a result of the recent pay rises, the hourly rate of pay has risen by over 20% since 2021, meaning that M&S workers will now receive an additional £150 per month compared to last year.
At the same time, the retailer has vowed to ensure its benefit package accurately reflects the changing needs of colleagues.
Stuart Machin, chief executive at Marks and Spencer said: “Whether you’re running a home or a business, everyone is trying to balance the reality of rising costs. Of course, we all hope inflation subsides, and there are some positive signs that it is doing so, but we need to help colleagues in the here and now.
“That’s why we are investing so significantly in our hourly rates of pay and why we are supporting colleagues with a continued commitment to our wide-ranging package of industry leading benefits.”
