Pret announces pay rises for the second time this year

From 1 December, all UK employees across its sites and support centre will receive a 5% pay increase to help support staff with the rising cost of living.

The £10m investment will surpass the £9.2m investment the company made in staff pay in April this year, taking the total to nearly £20m and making it the company’s biggest pay investment in its 36-year history.

By December, 8,600 UK restaurant staff will have seen an average baseline pay increase of 13% in 2022 with 6,500 team members receiving a pay and benefits package worth more than £11.55 per hour. The majority will earn £11.75 per hour.

“Our people have always been at the heart of our business. All over the country, our shop teams work around the clock to make Pret a place people love," says Guy Meakin, interim MD at Pret UK&I.

“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.”

Pret also says its baristas will be among the highest paid in the industry as a result of the wage increase, with wages of up to £13.75 per hour.

Guy Meakin, interim MD at Pret, will be speaking at this November's The Omnichannel Foodservice Conference. For more details and to attend click here.​​