Pret A Manger raises staff pay for second time this year as cost of living bites

Pret A Manger has announced its second pay rise this year to ease the cost of living crisis for its workers following an additional £10m investment in staff pay.

It comes after the company delivered its biggest increase in pay and benefits in its 36-year history with a £9.2m investment in April, which raised the pay of 8,000 of its 8,500 employees.

From 1 December, all UK employees across its shops and support centre will receive a 5% increase in pay, which the company said will make Pret baristas to some of the highest paid in the industry, earning up to £13.75 an hour.

Some 8,600 shop staff, including team members, shop managers and baristas, will see an average baseline pay rise of 13% within a year. In numerical terms, the annual increase could be as high as £1,000 for the average worker.

Pret's 6,500 shop team members will receive a benefits package, including free food and drink for staff on shift and additional hourly bonuses for early shifts, and pay worth more than £11.55 per hour, with the majority being paid above £11.75 per hour.

The investment marks the second consecutive year that Pret has announced two pay increases in the same year, taking the company’s total investment in salaries this year to almost £20m.

Guy Meakin, interim managing director at Pret A Manger UK & Ireland, said: “With the rising cost of living putting increased pressure on our people, we wanted to do more to support them, and to say thank you for continuing to go above and beyond for our customers.

“This will be the second year in a row we will have introduced a second pay rise in the same year for our employees, and we’re proud to be leading the industry on Barista pay. We aspire to always be a top employer, with all our employees earning well above the National Minimum Wage irrespective of age.

“We hope this further investment alongside staff discounts and free food and drink while working, will go some way in helping our Teams through the winter months and beyond.”

A number of high-profile hospitality companies have raised wages this year amid a shortage of staff. Restaurant chain Itsu announced last month that it was giving its entire workforce a 13% pay rise while Premier Inn owner Whitbread is to invest £15m in raising the pay of over 30,000 staff from November.

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