Stuart Machin, CEO, said: “Our vision is to be the most trusted retailer, and that starts with being the most trusted employer. That's why today we're making our biggest investment in our retail payment offering to recognize our colleagues for the vital role they play every day. This means that since March 2022, we have invested over £146 million (approximately $185.13 million) in our retail payment offering and have increased our standard hourly rate by over 26%. But creating a great place to work isn't just about salary; it's about the overall package and colleagues feeling valued and able to do their best. So, in addition to our pay increase, I'm pleased to announce some significant improvements to our family leave policies to support colleagues through life's big moments. A huge thank you to our 65,000 colleagues for their continued hard work.”
Marks & Spencer has announced an investment of £89 million ($112.84 million) in retail wages and £5 million ($6.34 million) to improve family leave policies. This includes pay increases for the team's customer service assistants and support managers, along with enhanced maternity, paternity and adoption leave benefits. These investments demonstrate the company's commitment to supporting its workforce.
Investment of £89 million (approximately $112.85 million) in store colleague salaries.
From 1 April, the pay rate for UK customer assistants (approximately 40,000 colleagues) will increase from £10.90 to £12.00 per hour, representing a 10.1% increase on last year and a 26.3% increase since March 2022. Mate, that's an increase of around £180 (approximately $228.17 million) per month compared to the current rate.
For customer service assistants working in London, the hourly rate will increase from £12.05 to £13.15, which is a 9.1% increase on last year.
For UK team support managers, the hourly rate will increase from £12.20 to £13.05, while for those in London, it will increase from £13.35 to £14.20.
This investment means that since March 2022, M&S has invested more than £146 million (approximately $185.07 million) into its overall retail pay package. It also means that all colleagues in UK stores will receive the real minimum wage as their base salary, plus M&S's wide range of benefits, such as its industry-leading 20% colleague discount, on top of that. The retailer's leading benefits package includes:
- An unlimited colleague discount of 20% on all M&S branded food, clothing and home products and from 25 March this will also extend to all branded products.
- An industry-leading pension contribution of up to 12%.
- The opportunity to participate in peer Sharesave schemes.
- Life coverage of up to 4x salary.
- Access to a 24/7 virtual GP service and an employee assistance program for colleagues and their wider family.
- Free eye exams at M&S Opticians.
- Access to six free physiotherapy sessions.
- Additional benefits to support health and wellbeing, including Check4Cancer support and risk assessments for the five most common cancers in the UK, with free screening for colleagues at higher risk.
- Neonatal Leave of up to 12 weeks of fully paid leave for any UK colleague whose baby requires specialist neonatal care, without having to worry about using up their maternity, paternity or adoption leave.
- Support for colleagues who are going through menopause, as well as uniform and specialized training for line managers.
- Support colleagues in life's big moments.
As well as investing in wages for store colleagues, M&S is also making substantial improvements to its maternity, paternity and adoption policies as it continues to invest in making M&S a great place to work for families: from 1 April, M&S Being one of the first retailers to introduce six weeks paternity leave on full pay (previously two weeks on full pay), while also almost doubling its maternity and adoption leave to 26 weeks, also on full pay, which It is equivalent to an investment of £5 million. annually.
Last year, M&S was also one of the first retailers to introduce a neonatal leave policy providing up to 12 weeks of fully paid leave to any UK colleague whose baby requires specialist neonatal care, without having to worry about exhausting their maternity, paternity, or adoption leave.
Investing in new family leave policies is part of M&S's commitment to providing more support and flexibility to colleagues so they don't miss the moments that really matter. Last year, M&S introduced a new flexible working offer, Worklife, aimed at helping colleagues achieve a better work-life balance. Through the programme, more than 3,000 retail managers have additional flexible working options to choose from, including spreading their hours over five days, working a compressed four-day week or a compressed nine-day fortnight. Additionally, all colleagues have access to a Job Share Finder platform that allows them to connect with potential job share matches. Emily King and Naomi Hartley, store managers at the new M&S store at Birmingham Bullring, are just one example of M&S co-working in action.
Last year, M&S received Menopause Friendly accreditation from Henpicked and in 2022, M&S launched a dedicated fertility treatment policy, giving colleagues up to 10 days off to attend appointments for up to three rounds of fertility treatment.
Note: The content of this press release has not been edited by Fibre2Fashion staff.
Fiber2Fashion News Desk (RM)
