John Lewis staff get £40m holiday windfall

Around 69,000 staff at John Lewis and Waitrose are to share a £40 million windfall in unpaid holiday pay stretching back to 2006.

The average payout to employees at the John Lewis Partnership, which owns both chains, will be about £350. While some staff will pocket several thousand pounds, more than half of the recipients will receive under £120.

Under EU Working Time Regulations, the group incorrectly calculated additions to pay, such as premiums for staff who worked on a Sunday or bank holidays.

JLP said the one-off payments, which date back to 2006, will not affect its annual bonus for staff, who were awarded a bonus of 17% of their salary in March – equal to nearly nine weeks’ pay.