Major grocery chains are now facing calls to reinstate pay at the level of the real living wage (Image: Getty)
Tesco, Sainsbury’s, M&S and the Co-op are being urged to bring in a £13.45 rule in stores to boost worker pay.
While all four supermarkets rolled out a pay rise for workers this April, the major grocery chains are now facing calls to reinstate pay at the level of the real living wage. The national minimum wage rose to £12.71 per hour on April 1 for those aged 21 and over across the UK, and many retailers are paying shop workers above this level – but few now match the higher real living wage which is currently £13.45 per hour in the UK and £14.80 in London.
The real living wage is the only UK wage rate calculated on the real cost of living and is voluntarily paid by more than 16,000 UK businesses. But as this wage is voluntary, it means employers can choose whether or not to pay it instead of the national minimum wage or national living wage.
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M&S said last month that it is no longer offering pay in line with the real living wage when it announced its latest wage hike, despite a rise of at least 6.4% and offering levels above the national minimum wage and inflation.
The Co-operative Group announced a 3.5% pay rise from April for its workers, but has now dropped a previous “long-standing commitment” to the real living wage.
Both Tesco and Sainsbury’s – which are two of the biggest supermarket chains in the UK – also no longer match pay to the real living wage and haven’t done so since 2025.
While both chains do pay higher than the national minimum wage after above-inflation rises, pay isn’t at the real living wage level.
Budget supermarkets Aldi and Lidl are the only major supermarkets to pay entry-level shop staff in line with the real living wage nationwide, with Aldi’s hourly rate exceeding the benchmark.
The John Lewis Partnership, which owns supermarket Waitrose, has hiked shop staff pay by 6.9% from April but only matches the real living wage for employees within the M25.
Investor activists ShareAction is now calling on the UK’s biggest supermarket chains to reinstate pay in line with the real living wage and said pressure on firms to make firm commitments on pay would be a “major focus” at upcoming annual meetings for shareholders.
But it comes amid steep cost pressures on the sector, not least higher National Insurance contributions after the tax hike in April last year.
Louise Eldridge, head of good work at ShareAction, said: “It’s disappointing to see supermarkets like M&S, Sainsbury’s and Tesco moving away from matching the real Living Wage pay rates after setting the pace in recent years.
“We know retailers are under real pressure. The latest Living Wage rise reflects higher living costs, but that’s exactly why paying people a wage they can actually live on is so important.”
A spokeswoman for Sainsbury’s, which increased worker pay by 5% in April, said the group had increased hourly wages by 42% in the past five years and rewarding staff “continues to be a priority”.
Tesco said its wages have risen by 43% over the last five years and its workers “also benefit from a competitive reward package”, while the Co-Op said it has aligned its lowest pay rates with the real living wage in recent years, but it is “not formally accredited as a Real Living Wage employer”.
M&S also stressed it has never formally committed to the living wage. A spokesperson said: “At M&S we’ve increased UK retail colleague pay by 34% and invested more than £350 million over the last four years while also offering sector leading benefits. This reflects the central role our people play as we reshape M&S for growth.”