Lidl's British workers get fifth pay rise in two years

LONDON (Reuters) -The British arm of German discount supermarket Lidl is to give its 28,000 hourly paid workers a fifth pay rise in two years, matching the increased level offered by rival Aldi, it said on Friday.

The Bank of England is keeping a close eye on wage settlements as it assesses whether to lower interest rates further.

Official data published on Tuesday showed Britain's jobs market weakened again, with payrolls falling for a sixth month and vacancies dropping further. However, wage growth stayed strong, underscoring why the BoE is so cautious about cutting interest rates.

The latest increase from Lidl GB, which trades from 980 stores, will from September 1 see entry-level pay rise from 12.75 pounds ($17.32) an hour to 13 pounds nationally, rising to 13.95 pounds with length of service. Workers in London will see higher rates.

Last month, Aldi UK said it would pay store assistants at least 13 pounds an hour from September 1. Industry leader Tesco will pay a minimum of 12.64 pounds an hour from the same date.

Britain's government-mandated main minimum wage is currently 12.21 pounds an hour.

Earlier this month, the body which effectively sets the rate said it will probably need to rise to 12.71 pounds next year to keep up with the government's goal for it to match two-thirds of median earnings.

($1 = 0.7362 pounds)

(Reporting by James Davey; Editing by Toby Chopra)