Nationwide to give thousands of workers £1,200 cost of living bonus from October

Nationwide has announced it will pay 11,000 members of staff a £1,200 bonus to help with the cost of living crisis.

Employees are set to receive the bonus as inflation hits 9.4% and household bills are predicted to rise above £5,000 by January 2032.

The bonus will not be given to anyone in the company earning a salary of £35,000 or higher, meaning around 61% of Nationwide staff will be entitled to the payment.

Eligible staff members will receive the cash in two instalments, with £600 being paid out in October and the other £600 in December of this year.

Debbie Crosbie, chief executive officer at Nationwide, said: “The months ahead will be worrying for many people and we’re always considering new ways to help our members.

“But rising prices affect our colleagues too and that’s why we’re providing this additional support.”

How are other companies supporting staff? 

The bonus pay from Nationwide follows similar moves by HSBC, Barclays, Lloyds, Natwest, Santander and Virgin Money who have all also announced extra payments for workers.

Roughly 35,000 Barclays staff members have received a £1,200 pay rise this month, and HSBC junior employees are set to receive a £1,500 bonus.

Lloyds is offering a £1,000 bonus to more than 64,000 members of staff, and at Natwest, those earning less than £32,000 will receive an additional 4% salary increase.

Reuters reported that 11,000 Santander employees earning under £35,000 would also receive a 4% pay rise.

Elsewhere, Aldi has confirmed a second rise pay rise for around 4,200 logistics workers in its distribtuion centres, with staff to benefit from the increase from September.

The hourly rate for “warehouse selectors”, the most common role at its distribution centres, will rise to £12.66 an hour - an increase of 9% on January 2022 rates.

If working unsociable hours, warehouse employees will see their night premium payments increase from 20% to 25%.

These new rates exceed the Living Wage Foundation’s recommendation of the real living wage of £9.90 an hour nationally.