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PRIVACY
Retail & Consumer

European retail leader on backing front line workers with pay and protection

Debbie Robinson is the European vice president of Euro Co-ops and was Paul Sewell's Humber Business Week Elevenses guest

Debbie Robinson with Paul Sewell at the Humber Business Week Elevenses interview.(Image: Ascough Associates Media and Public Relations)

A leading European retail executive has told how she has prioritised fairness for front line workers as she addressed an audience at Humber Business Week in Hull.

Debbie Robinson, the Central Co-op chief executive and European vice president of Euro Co-ops, also rejected talk of “levelling up” and said what the North needs is to get its fair share back.

She said: “When I hear that the Bank of England are worried that an increase in the minimum wage is going to impact inflation it’s just ridiculous so the pay thing is crucial. It’s got to be significantly higher than where it is today.

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“I think people are a bit fed up at the moment. When you’ve got your nurses and your doctors and your rail strikes going on it’s a strong indication that people have had enough. Something I really believe in is pay and entry-level workers, and we just need to pay people a bit more money to help them through. Central Co-op is trying to lead the way on finding ways that we can improve the terms and conditions for all of our colleagues.

“You should be able to earn the money to buy your own food. I don’t think anybody down the food chain should be supplementing it for anybody else. If somebody isn’t being paid enough to put food on your table how are they going to be able to afford food? Surely people deserve to earn enough money to be able to buy their own food, heat their own homes and have a decent life? Make work pay!”

Debbie added that she sees young people as particularly hard hit by the cost-of-living crisis.

She said: “The idea behind the Co-op was that people were working really, really hard and they couldn’t get by. Does it sound familiar? Here we are in 2023. Working was not enough to pay for your food and your housing.