Burberry raises staff pay to tackle cost of living crisis

In light of the rising cost of living, luxury fashion brand Burberry has brought forward the new UK real Living Wage pay rates by more than six months to support colleagues this winter.

Burberry, which has been a UK real Living Wage employer since 2016, has implemented the increased rates from 1 October 2022, ahead of the deadline set by the Living Wage Foundation for accredited employers of 14 May 2023.

Jonathan Akeroyd, Chief Executive Officer at Burberry, commented: “At Burberry, our priority is our people. We’re proud to implement the UK real Living Wage early and hope that this, coupled with the policies and wellbeing programmes we already have in place, will help to alleviate some of the challenges our colleagues are facing.”

Katherine Chapman, Director of the Living Wage Foundation, added: “We are delighted that Burberry is implementing the new real Living Wage rates with immediate effect. Burberry is a long-time supporter and champion of the real Living Wage movement and today’s announcement will make a massive difference. Burberry is one of 11,000 Living Wage employers across the UK who are committed to always doing right by their employees by paying a wage based on the real cost of living.”

Burberry has also recently received approval from the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) for its net-zero emissions target. The announcement confirms that the goals Burberry has set to reach net-zero emissions by 2040 are based on the latest climate science and meet the need to keep warming to 1.5°C in line with the Paris Agreement.

Last month, Marks & Spencer announced a pay rise for more than 40,000 of its staff, marking the second salary increase this year as the retailer responds to cost-of-living concerns.