Iceland boss warns shock minimum wage rise would ‘bankrupt’ supermarket
Iceland executive chairman Richard Walker has warned any sudden increases of the minimum wage would “bankrupt” the supermarket.
The frozen food specialist’s boss told The Telegraph it was “absolutely right” to transform working practises and increase workers pays, but this has to happen slowly, as a “shock” rise could have a “disastrous” impact.
Walker, a former Tory donor who switched allegiances to Labour earlier this year, cautioned the new government on the speed at which it should introduced its worker reform plans.
“If Labour puts up the minimum wage and brings in day one rights, that’s fine, but it needs to be bled in slowly,” said Walker. “If they turn around and say ‘the minimum wage is £15 now’, that would bankrupt us.”
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“A huge leap in the national minimum wage would be disastrous. Of course, people should be paid as much as we possibly can. So let’s keep the ambition and keep pushing, but not have such a shock to business.”
The chairman’s comments come amid the government’s new plan to overhaul workers right, with the new deputy prime minister Angela Rayner pledging to scrap zero-hour contracts, give employees protection for unfair dismissal and increase minimum wage.
Walker also defended zero-hour contract despite them being labelled by Labour as “exploitative”.
The chairman said: “Some people want them, they might be studying or want the flexibility. I don’t think it is as simple as being exploitative.”
It is not the first time the Iceland boss has voiced his opinions on politics. In June, Iceland published its first-ever supermarket manifesto, ‘Frozen Out’, as Walker pledged to use his platform to give customers a voice during election year.
4 Comments. Leave new
He’ll just have to buy one new helicopter this year then.
Let Labour and politicians give some of their income they earn enough
He’s spot-on. In simple terms, these deals have to be equitable for all parties. Push the finances of any business too far through legislative means results in less jobs, and/or less hours, a poorer standard of service, etc. It’s complex. Same for PLCs: people might say ‘well, they just made a billion in profit, so they should pay more.’ Yet these businesses are owned by shareholders [whether individuals or institutions] who expect [or demand] certain levels of returns. If these expectations aren’t met, they simply take their money somewhere else. Which lowers the financial value of a company, resulting in less hours and/or jobs…
He could save some money by closing down the exceptionally poorly managed store in Cambridge! It’s the most shambolic operation imaginable. Not really big enough for the amount of stock that gets delivered (to save on business rates?). Lots of waste. Overrun with rats. The staff are absolute hoodlums and are frankly lucky to get even the lowest rate of £11 or whatever. Paid to shirk. Place is unsurprisingly always empty.