Thousands of Lush staff will receive a pay rise thanks to plans to extend the payment of the voluntary Living Wage.
The cosmetics retailer will now pay permanent staff in its high street shops and manufacturing business outside London the figure of £8.45 an hour, the voluntary rate set for the rest of the UK.
Lush has been paying staff in London £9.75 an hour since 2011.
The decision to extend the living wage rate to the rest of the UK means more than 3500 Lush staff will receive a pay rise.
For full-time staff, this is worth over £2000 on a 40-hour week.
READ MORE: Lush moves staff to Germany following Brexit doubts
“We are delighted to be making this announcement to our lovely, dedicated and enthusiastic staff. It is thanks to all their hard work that we have been able to make this commitment,” Lush finance director Kim Coles said.
The voluntary rate set by the Living Wage Foundation is higher than the government‘s National Living Wage of £7.20 an hour for adults.
Living Wage Foundation director Katherine Chapman said having Lush on board was “really significant” and hopes other major retailers feel encouraged to follow its lead.
“It shows that paying a fair wage in the retail sector isn’t just achievable it makes business sense too,” she said.
“At a time when some large businesses are even falling short of their legal obligations around pay it is important to recognise those fantastic employers who are choosing to go further and pay a real Living Wage.”
Chapman added that over 3000 UK employers are now signing up to the real Living Wage.
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