B&M giving shop floor staff a bonus for facing ‘exceptional circumstances of the pandemic’

B&M is giving a pay bonus to its shop floor staff, with 30,000 workers set to receive an extra week’s wage as a thank you.

The budget retailer has agreed to pay the extra money in recognition of their hard work over Christmas and during the ‘exceptional challenges of the pandemic’.

The move follows talks between B&M and the shopworkers’ trade union Usdaw. Dave Gill, Usdaw national officer, said: “It’s been a tough time for retail staff, so we are pleased to have secured this bonus for our members in B&M.

“They are providing an essential service, that we all rely on, and they deserve our support, respect and appreciation. So we very much welcome B&M’s recognition of the work their staff are doing in these difficult times.

“We continue to call on the company to revisit the support provided for extremely vulnerable colleagues and are always working to improve health and safety.”

Albert Bridge / Geograph

B&M’s founder and chief executive, Simon Arora, will also take home a hefty payout of £30million, as sales were high over the festive period – bosses say sales in the 13 weeks to December 26th soared by 26.6% to £1.4billion.

The popular chain was and still is classed as an essential retailer, meaning its stores have been able to operate throughout the numerous lockdowns and tiers, with the company opening 18 new stores – and closing two – seeing the creation of 500 new jobs and bringing the total number of B&M stores in the UK to 673.

Mr Arora said: “Our trading performance is testament to the hard work and commitment of all our colleagues, to whom I express my sincere thanks.

“The safety and wellbeing of our customers and colleagues has remained our priority during these unprecedented times, whilst we have worked hard to provide customers with the everyday essentials they need.

“We are awarding some 30,000 store and distribution colleagues an extra week’s wages in recognition of their considerable efforts.”