Lidl Ireland becomes first employer to commit to living wage for 2023

Kenneth Fox

Lidl Ireland has announced they will become the first large employer to commit to the latest rate of €13.85 as recommended by the Living Wage Technical Group for 2023.

The company will invest €7.5 million to introduce this change that will benefit 4,200 employees across Ireland, as all other employees currently earn in excess of the new Living Wage.

The wage is independent assessed and recommended rate of income considered necessary to have a socially acceptable standard of living.

It is the second increase to pay rates that Lidl has announced this year and is in recognition of the ongoing hard work and dedication of store and warehouse colleagues, particularly as the cost-of-living crisis continues.

They said a full-time colleague impacted by this increase earning approximately €1,500 more a year. Employees will benefit from the new living wage level from the March 1st, 2023.

This announcement comes on the back of a €10 million investment by the company in March of this year which saw all 5,000 employees receive a pay rise.

In total, across the 12 months from March 2022 to March 2023 Lidl will have invested €17.5 million in pay increases across the organisation.

Speaking about the announcement, Maeve McCleane, chief people officer at Lidl Ireland said: “Our most important asset is our people and now more than ever before, it is vitally important that we deliver on our responsibility to support our employees to overcome the challenges of the cost-of-living crisis as best we can.

"Our latest commitment to adopt the recommended Living Wage for 2023, for the seventh year in a row, will mean a second pay rise announced for more than 84 per cent of our employees in less than 12 months.

“At Lidl, we’ve prioritised building not only an exceptional place to work, but also an inclusive, rewarding and fulfilling culture for our employees with industry leading initiatives including paid fertility leave, the removal of the mandatory retirement age and our compassionate leave policy.

"We can see clear evidence that we continue to be an employer of choice for Irish workers with just over 92,000 applications in 2021 versus 76,000 pre-pandemic in 2019."