Heart of England Co-operative Society staff who worked tirelessly to keep the network of food stores and funeral homes operating through the worst of the Covid-19 pandemic are set to be rewarded with bonus pay.
The society says it is awarding one extra week of pay as a thank you to colleagues who helped keep the shelves stocked throughout its 35 food stores, and Funeral colleagues who worked round the clock to support grieving families.
Head office colleagues who continued working to ensure internal systems remained operational are also being rewarded for their dedication, says the society.
Heart of England has already introduced a range of other benefits for employees during lockdown.
These included:
- A weekly £20 shopping allowance through staff members’ rewards cards for essential shopping, for a period of nine weeks.
- Providing increased staff discount levels of up to 20% for a period of time.
- Providing frontline staff in Food stores with a daily £5 lunch allowance for a period of time.
Chief executive Ali Kurji said: “The Covid-19 pandemic really has been an exceptionally difficult time for everyone and a true test of strength.
“But our colleagues have shown remarkable resilience throughout the pandemic, ensuring we could continue to provide a service for our Food customers and Funeral client families.
“This level of dedication has always been at the very core of our business and is the reason why the society has stood the test of time over the past 188 years.
“We are delighted to reward all our staff who have worked tirelessly since the early days of the pandemic, and continue to be committed for the benefit of their colleagues, customers and members.”
