One in four supermarket workers have said they are skipping meals each month to meet bill payments, according to research by trade union Usdaw.
This figure soared from one in 20 last year, as the UK lowest paid workers struggle amid rising energy prices, inflation the cost of living crisis continues to bite.
A survey of 5,500 supermarket employees revealed that petrol prices and travel costs are impacting impacting the ability to get to work.
READ MORE: Usdaw ‘deeply concerned’ by 21% increase in shoplifting
Seven in 10 of those surveyed said they have relied on insecure borrowing to cover household costs, with 60% of that group reporting they have subsequently struggled with repayments.
This comes as the Bank of England has predicted that inflation will soar past 13% in October, as it hikes interest rate to 1.75% and warns of a recession in the UK.
Usdaw general secretary Paddy Lillis has accused ministers of offering “only sticking plasters” in response to the crisis.
As a result, he calls for “significant increases in minimum wage rates and fundamental reforms to end insecure work.”
“Many respondents talked of how increased fuel prices were leading them to cut down on shifts, to ask for a transfer to a store closer to home or even to consider leaving work altogether,” he said.
Lillis also declared that the survey “lays bare the struggle low-paid workers are experiencing just to make ends meet”.
One survey respondent told Usdaw: “I live alone and have no family to rely on, so feel really desperate, I have nobody to turn to for help.” Another said: “Too many threatening letters, I can’t cope anymore, there is nothing left to pay them.”
Another retail worker explained: “I have two jobs, as one wouldn’t pay the bills. I work 7 days a week at the moment, I’ve got a stretch of 84 days before my next day off. It’s heart-breaking.”
A fourth respondent added: “Can’t afford to live. I’m a single parent off sick with breast cancer.”
As a result, Usdaw is calling for a new deal for workers, including a minimum wage of at least £12 per hour as a step towards £15 per hour for all workers, a minimum contract of 16 hours per week for everyone who wants it and a ban on zero-hour contracts.
It is also demanding for better sick pay for all workers, improved social security systems as Universal Credit does not provide an “effective safety net”.
Increased job security, including day-one employment rights for unfair dismissal and “significant” improvements to redundancy protections.
Usdaw has highlighted the need for greater protection at work and respect for shopworkers and for workers to have a voice at work, including cracking down on employers who refuse to engage with trade unions and banning ‘fire and rehire’.
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