Caffè Nero scraps free staff lunch blaming living wage hike

International coffee chain Caffè Nero has announced that its employees will no longer be entitled to a free lunch, due to the implementation of the National Living Wage (NLW).

Staff at the company were told in a letter that this perk would end on 11 April following the new minimum wage requirements for over 25’s of £7.20 per hour.

According to the Independent, Caffè Nero bosses said that the change in wages will have a “significant financial impact on the business”, and they were therefore trying to find new ways of cutting costs.

The chain told BuzzFeed News that they were spending “four times” the amount they were legally required to, having decided to increase the wage of all staff under 25 too – and that they would offer staff a 65% discount across the entire food range.