Aldi is raising pay for store staff for the second time this year, extending its position as Lancashire's 'best paying supermarket'.

Aldi store assistants and deputy store managers in Lancashire are set to receive a pay rise of 40p an hour from June 1, as part of the supermarket’s announcement of its latest investment in its store staff across the UK.

The investment marks Aldi's latest commitment to its people, after becoming the first supermarket to pay Lancashire’s store and warehouse colleagues at least £12 an hour in February.

The new pay increases will see the hourly rate of store assistants and deputy store managers in Lancashire rise from £12 to £12.40.

Aldi also remains the only supermarket to offer paid breaks, which for the average store employee is worth more than £900 a year.

The latest increase takes Aldi’s investment in pay so far this year to £79m. It is also planning to create 5,500 new jobs in the UK this year.

Giles Hurley, chief executive officer of Aldi UK and Ireland, said: “We firmly believe that our colleagues are the best in the business, so it is only right that they remain the best-paid and we are committed to never being beaten on pay by any other supermarket.

“Our store operations colleagues play an integral part in our ever-increasing popularity among shoppers and our continued investment in their pay is another way to thank them for the role they play in making Aldi what it is today.” 

Aldi is the UK’s fourth-largest supermarket and has more than 1,000 stores, 11 regional distribution centres and 45,000 employees across Britain.