Bonus backlash: John Lewis workers angered by awards for senior staff
Retail group John Lewis Partnership has angered employees after senior managers received awards while a wider partnership bonus was denied for the first time.
Almost 4,000 special contribution awards were made last year, it was first reported by The Financial Times, including to 16 managers, out of an 79,000-strong workforce.
A wider percentage award was not paid last year, for the first time since 1953, due to the strain of coronavirus lockdowns on the retailer’s revenue.
The retailer said the group could not afford to pay the £50m price tag as it battled Covid side effects including store closures and restructuring costs.
A profit-sharing scheme was created in 1920 and slashed in 1948 for five years while the country recovered from the war.
The partnership council voted on the issue last year and discussed the matter at a meeting on Thursday.
Senior managers received an average award of £12,281, totalling £196,500 but no executive directors received a bonus. Contribution awards are capped at 10 per cent of salary for exceptional service and were introduced a decade ago.
More than a thousand comments have reportedly been posted about the bonuses on the group’s intranet, with workers protesting that the move was unfair.
John Lewis said that 81 per cent of partners now received the voluntary Real Living Wage and the group had committed to pay it to everyone when profits recover to £200m.
Some 55,000 shop floor staff recieved a £200 bonus last year as a token of thanks from the retailer for workers’ efforts during the pandemic.