Aldi set to recruit 3,800 staff as store aims to increase pay by 3pc
THE BRITISH arm of German discount supermarket Aldi will recruit more than 3,800 store level positions this year and increase pay as part of its drive to hire the best staff for its expansion across the country.
Aldi has announced plans to increase its pay for staff in stores by just over 3 per cent, making it one of the best-paying supermarkets in the UK.
The discounter said minimum hourly rates will rise from £9.10 an hour to £9.40, with workers inside the M25 getting £10.90 an hour instead of £10.55.
And for employees who have been with the business for three years or more, pay will increase to £10.41 an hour, while workers in London with two years’ service will earn £11.15.
Aldi also pointed out that it is one of the few supermarkets to pay staff during breaks.
The new rates exceed the Living Wage Foundation’s recommended pay rates, although Aldi
is not a member of the organisation, which also requires companies to agree to a series of staff wellbeing levels.
Retailers are in a fierce battle to keep and reward workers. Greggs recently announced that its staff would share a £7m bonus.
And Mike Ashley of Frasers Group – formerly Sports Direct – said last year that he wanted to introduce a new bonus scheme for store staff, although details remain unclear.
Giles Hurley, chief executive of Aldi UK, said: “We have the most efficient and productive workforce, and this is why they earn the highest rates of pay in the grocery sector.”
Aldi, which currently trades from 874 stores, said it remains on track to achieve its longterm target of 1,200 UK stores by 2025.
Earlier this month, it was revealed that Christmas sales at Aldi topped £1bn for the first time as British shoppers spent record amounts at the German chain.
UK sales in the four weeks to December 24 marked a 7.9 per cent rise on the same period in 2018, Aldi revealed.
The chain sold 55 million mince pies, 22 million pigs in blankets, and more than two million Christmas puddings.
Mr Hurley said: “More customers than ever before shopped with us this Christmas.”