Major UK supermarkets are facing renewed pressure to restore workers' pay to the real living wage, after many retailers reduced their commitments amid significant industry cost pressures.
Investor activist group ShareAction is leading the call, urging the country's largest supermarket chains to restore wages to this level.
The campaign follows recent pay rises announced by the sector, ahead of the April 1 increase in the national minimum wage to £12.71 an hour for those aged 21 and over.
While many now pay above this legal minimum, few currently achieve the highest real living wage.
This voluntary benchmark, calculated independently and reflecting actual living costs, is currently £13.45 per hour nationally and £14.80 in London.
It was revealed last month that M&S is no longer offering wages in line with the real living wage when it announced its latest pay rise, despite an increase of at least 6.4 per cent and offering levels above the national minimum wage and inflation.
The Co-operative Group was also the last to announce its pay rise for workers, up 3.5 per cent since April, but has now abandoned a previous “long-standing commitment” to the real living wage.
The two biggest players in the sector, Tesco and Sainsbury's, also do not equate pay to the real living wage and have not done so since 2025.
Both pay more than the national minimum wage after increases above inflation, but not at the level of the living wage.
Discount supermarkets Aldi and Lidl are the only major supermarkets to pay entry-level store staff in line with the real living wage across the country, and Aldi's hourly rate exceeds the benchmark.
John Lewis Partnership, owner of supermarket Waitrose, has increased pay for store staff by 6.9% since April, but it only matches the real living wage of employees within the M25.
ShareAction said pressure on companies to make firm commitments on remuneration would be a “major focus” for it at upcoming annual shareholder meetings.
But it comes amid strong cost pressures on the sector, including higher National Insurance contributions after the tax rise in April last year.
Louise Eldridge, head of good work at ShareAction, said: “It is disappointing to see supermarkets such as M&S, Sainsbury's and Tesco stop matching real pay rates after setting the pace in recent years.
“We know retailers are under real pressure.
“The latest living wage increase reflects higher living costs, but that is exactly why it is so important to pay people a living wage.”
He added: “Investors have been making the case to these companies that better pay has been shown to have business benefits, from better morale to lower turnover and higher productivity.
“We have made progress on disclosure, but that alone will not help staff cover the basics, so we continue to push for concrete commitments on remuneration. This will be a major focus for us at the supermarkets' AGMs this year.”
A spokeswoman for Sainsbury's, which increased workers' pay by 5 per cent in April, said the group had increased hourly wages by 42 per cent in the last five years.
“Our colleagues are at the heart of our success and rewarding them well remains a priority,” he said.
A spokesperson for the Co-op said: “In recent years we have aligned our lower pay rates with the real wage, although we are not formally accredited as a real wage employer.
“The payment is considered part of our wider rewards offering, which includes benefits such as paid breaks, colleague discounts and wellbeing support.”
M&S highlighted that it has never formally committed to the living wage.
Tesco said its wages have increased by 43 percent over the past five years, adding that its workers “also benefit from a competitive rewards package.”
