Union dismisses Sports Direct £10m pay pledge

Sports Direct made the commitment that its directly employed UK employees and directly engaged casual workers will be paid above the National Minimum Wage from 1st January 2016. The cost of this measure is likely to be circa £10m per annum, said the company. Pay for 18 to 20- year-olds will increase to £5.45 while workers aged over 21 have seen pay rise to £6.85 an hour.

Unite said Sports Direct needs to become an accredited living wage employer and end abusive work practices if it’s to realise Mike Ashley’s promise of becoming a model employer on a par with John Lewis.

Accusing Sports Direct of engaging in yet another ‘PR stunt’ to distract attention from ‘Victorian’ work practices at its Shirebrook warehouse, Unite urged Mike Ashley to lay out the scope and timing of his review into working conditions at Shirebrook.

Unite regional officer Luke Primarolo said: “This pitiful promise by Sports Direct to pay just over the minimum wage should not distract from the ‘Victorian’ work practices at the retailer’s massive Shirebrook depot. Nor should it deter HMRC from investigating the possible non-payment of the minimum wage to the thousands of agency staff who eke out a living on the site.

“Fundamental problems remain at Sports Direct ranging from the exploitative use of zero hours contracts in its stores through to ‘gulag’ working conditions at its main warehouse in Shirebrook."

Sports Direct denies naming and shaming warehouse workers