Costa joins Starbucks by increasing pay levels

Starbucks will raise wages for all United Kingdom staff in accordance with the National Living Wage, a 6 per cent hike for its workers.

The firm today announced it was to increase its basic pay to £7.20 an hour next April for all employees, including apprentices.

All baristas, will earn £7.20 an hour, up from the current base of £6.77, while supervisors will earn £8.72, up from £8.20.

Starbucks has announced that it will help employees who rent properties to pay their deposits by offering an interest-free loan to cover the cost. “Our people are the heart of our business and we’re committed to investing in them through higher rates of pay, training, job creation and apprenticeships”. On Friday (25 September) the managing director of John Lewis, Andy Street, said that the retailor was dealing with “big issues” to pay the increased national living wage.

The rent incentive package is part of Starbucks plan of improving the welfare of its staff. The coffee chain with a market capitalization of about 86 billion has in the recent past undertaken a number of social impact schemes.

McDonalds, which sold around 140 million cups of coffee across its range past year, said that its staff get an annual performance review which can lead to pay rises of up to 4.5%.

Across England the average rental deposit is £1,226 but significantly higher in London.

Starbucks will also offer loans for tenancy deposits to help its employees, particularly those under the age of 25, “tackle the cost of living”.

Shelter chief executive Campbell Robb said, “There are now 11m private renters in England, and as housing costs keep rising, more and more people are struggling to scrape together the deposit needed to rent a home”.

It said it will pay all staff the minimum wage of £7.20, not just those aged 25 and over, which the government has ordered. Its Tenancy Deposit Loan Scheme was launched in 2013 with its own staff and the charity said it had been a “success”. “This will no doubt encourage other United Kingdom employers to follow their example and give renters the helping hand they need”.