Supermarkets Face Growing Pressure to Reinstate Real Living Wage Commitments
Major UK supermarkets are being urged to restore worker pay in line with the real living wage, after several leading retailers have stepped back from matching this voluntary salary benchmark in recent years. This call comes amid soaring industry cost pressures and follows recent pay announcements ahead of the April increase in the national minimum wage.
Investor Activists Lead the Charge for Fair Pay
Investor activist group ShareAction is calling on the UK's biggest grocery chains, including some of the country's largest employers, to reinstate pay at the level of the real living wage. The organisation has identified this as a major focus for upcoming annual shareholder meetings, emphasising that better pay has proven business benefits including improved morale, lower staff turnover, and higher productivity.
Louise Eldridge, head of good work at ShareAction, expressed disappointment at the trend, stating: "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. 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."
Major Retailers Step Back from Wage Benchmark
The real living wage, a voluntary independent benchmark calculated on the real cost of living, is currently set at £13.45 per hour across the UK and £14.80 in London. While many supermarkets pay shop workers above the national minimum wage, which rose to £12.71 per hour for those aged 21 and over on April 1, few now match the higher real living wage standard.
Marks & Spencer was revealed last month to no longer offer pay in line with the real living wage when announcing its latest wage hike, despite implementing a rise of at least 6.4% that exceeds both the national minimum wage and inflation. The company has stressed it has never formally committed to the living wage.
The Co-operative Group has also dropped its previous "long-standing commitment" to the real living wage, announcing a 3.5% pay increase from April. A spokesperson noted that while the company has aligned its lowest rates with the real living wage in recent years, it is not formally accredited as a real living wage employer.
Industry Leaders No Longer Match Benchmark
The two largest players in the sector, Tesco and Sainsbury's, have not matched pay to the real living wage since 2025. Both companies pay higher than the national minimum wage following above-inflation rises, but not at the living wage level.
A Sainsbury's spokeswoman highlighted that the company has increased hourly wages by 42% over the past five years, with a 5% increase implemented in April. "Our colleagues are at the heart of our success and rewarding them well continues to be a priority," she stated.
Tesco emphasised that its wages have risen by 43% over the last five years, adding that workers "also benefit from a competitive reward package."
Discount Retailers Maintain Higher Standards
In contrast to the major supermarkets, discount retailers Aldi and Lidl remain the only major supermarkets paying entry-level shop staff in line with the real living wage nationwide. Aldi's hourly rate actually exceeds the benchmark, setting a different standard within the competitive grocery sector.
The John Lewis Partnership, which owns supermarket Waitrose, has increased shop staff pay by 6.9% from April but only matches the real living wage for employees within the M25 area surrounding London.
Industry Faces Multiple Cost Pressures
The push for supermarkets to reinstate real living wage commitments comes amid steep cost pressures on the sector. These include higher National Insurance contributions following tax increases implemented in April last year, alongside broader inflationary pressures affecting the entire retail industry.
ShareAction's Eldridge acknowledged these challenges, stating: "We know retailers are under real pressure," while maintaining that "paying people a wage they can actually live on is so important" precisely because the living wage reflects higher living costs.
The organisation has indicated that while progress has been made on pay disclosure, this alone won't help staff cover basic living expenses, prompting continued pressure for concrete commitments on pay at upcoming supermarket annual general meetings.
