Sainsbury’s unveils fresh £200m investment in staff pay

Starting from March 2024, Sainsbury’s said it would become the country’s largest supermarket to pay the new Real Living Wage and that the £200m was its biggest-ever investment in colleague pay, upping the wages of 120,000 staff.

Sainsbury’s said that for staff outside London it represents a nearly £2,000-a-year pay rise, rising to almost £2,300 a year for staff in the capital.

The grocer has increased pay by 50% since 2018 and 9% in the last year, and has invested more than £500m in staff pay over the last three years.

The supermarket giant said it had also provided staff with free food during shifts and increased Sainsbury’s discount every Friday and Saturday to 15% and Argos every payday to 15%.

Sainsbury’s chief executive Simon Roberts said: “Our colleagues do a brilliant job delivering for our customers every day and at the same time they are continuing to face the rising costs of living.

“So, in addition to investing to keep our prices low for customers, I’m delighted to confirm an industry-leading pay increase again this year for all our hourly paid colleagues. At Sainsbury’s we will be increasing pay by 9.1% to £12 per hour, taking our investment into colleague pay to more than £500m over three years.

“For a full-time colleague, this is an extra £1,910 a year and this increase is well ahead of inflation and the government’s 2024 national living wage of £11.44.

“We continue to lead our industry in the level of reward and benefits we provide for our people and this remains a clear priority for us at Sainsbury’s. We believe well rewarded, engaged colleagues deliver the best service, and attracting and retaining the best talent will be crucial to our success in delivering the next phase of our business strategy.”