John Lewis and Currys latest UK retailers to give inflation-busting pay rises

LONDON (Reuters) - The John Lewis Partnership and Currys on Thursday became the latest major British retailers to give their staff inflation-beating pay rises which only partly reflect a hike in the government-mandated minimum wage.

The rises will be monitored by the Bank of England, which is keeping a close eye on wage settlements as it assesses whether to lower interest rates further after cutting by a quarter-point last month.

The employee-owned partnership which runs John Lewis department stores and the Waitrose supermarket chain said it was investing 114 million pounds ($147 million) in a 7.4% pay rise for 65,000 workers across the business, while electricals retailer Currys said it was investing 8 million pounds in a 6% increase for 15,000 workers.

Several other retailers, including Marks & Spencer, B&Q, Sainsbury's and Costa Coffee, have also recently announced above-inflation pay rises.

The new rates come ahead of the UK government's 6.7% hike in the national minimum wage to 12.21 pounds for most adults that will kick in from next month.

UK inflation hit a 10-month high of 3% in January, according to official data.

British pay growth accelerated in late 2024, according to official data published last month that suggested the jobs market was holding up and underscored why the Bank of England has been cautious about cutting interest rates despite a weak overall economy.

John Lewis said that from April 1, the minimum rate of pay for workers outside London will increase to 12.40 pounds an hour and to 13.85 pounds for workers in London.

Currys said the minimum hourly rate for store workers will rise to 12.51 pounds outside of London and 13.51 pounds in the capital.

($1 = 0.7765 pounds)

(Reporting by James Davey; Editing by Christina Fincher)