Three unveils wage hike for store staff and £500 cost of living payout

The group said hourly pay for retail staff will rise by 10.1% outside London to £11.15 and by 8.1% in London to £12.32 from January.

Holly Williams
Wednesday 21 December 2022 11:15 GMT
Around 2,500 retail staff at mobile phone network Three UK are to see their pay rise by up to 10.1% while many workers across the business will receive a £500 payment to help with soaring living costs (PA)
Around 2,500 retail staff at mobile phone network Three UK are to see their pay rise by up to 10.1% while many workers across the business will receive a £500 payment to help with soaring living costs (PA) (PA Archive)

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Around 2,500 retail staff at mobile phone network Three UK are to see their pay rise by up to 10.1% while many workers across the business will receive a £500 payment to help with soaring living costs.

The group said hourly pay for staff in its 297 stores in the UK will rise by 10.1% outside London to £11.15 and by 8.1% in London to £12.32 from January 1.

It said all staff earning less than £30,000 a year across the wider business will be handed the £500 one off payment in this month’s pay packet as the group ramps up support for staff in the cost of living crisis.

Three – which employs more than 4,800 people in total in the UK and has offices in Reading and Glasgow – said head office employees will see their annual pay rise by 7% on average next month.

The hikes follow pay rises last January that saw Three lift hourly wages for its retail staff by 12.6% outside London.

Store staff can also earn up to a further 25% on their salary through bonuses, it added.

It comes as firms nationwide are increasing pay to help support staff and boost recruitment in the face of surging inflation, which has risen to 40-year highs due to sky rocketing energy bills and food prices.

Inflation stood at 10.7% in November, but reached as high as 11.1% in October – the highest level for 41 years.

Mark Redmond, chief people officer for Three UK, said: “I would like to take this opportunity to thank all my colleagues for their hard work – especially during a particularly busy time in the lead up to Christmas.

“They are the backbone of our company, and it is right that we reward them for their efforts.”

Three – which launched in 2003 as the UK’s first 3G only network – said that the pay rise comes on top of its other benefits, including private medical insurance and free flu vaccines, a free mobile device or £200 every 18 months, as well as up to 30% discounts at Superdrug and an annual subscription to mental health app, Headspace.

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