John Lewis staff set for bonus cut

Staff at John Lewis and Waitrose will see their bonus cut for the first time in three years today as the employee-owned firm falls foul of the economic downturn.

John Lewis Partnership, which has more than 75,000 staff, is expected to announce a payout of between 12 per cent and 14 per cent of salary in its full-year results, compared with 18 per cent last year from a bonus pot of £194.5m.

Each worker - from the weekend check-out assistant to chairman Charlie Mayfield - receives the same percentage of salary as a bonus and will be informed of the windfall as the results are published at 9.30am.

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The first reduction since 2009 comes as profits are squeezed by the firm’s “never knowingly undersold” policy, which sees it match rivals’ special offers, and Waitrose’s pledge to price-match Tesco on 1,000 everyday branded products.

One analyst has forecast pre-tax profits for the full year of £350m, which compares with £366m last year.

In September it announced half-year profits fell by almost a fifth to £90.4m after it was hurt by its price-matching pledges.

The parent company is expected to highlight market share gains for its grocery chain Waitrose, which has rolled out new stores and targeted more of the convenience sector.

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John Lewis department stores were boosted by strong online growth in 2011, while it saw a strong Christmas helped by a highly acclaimed advertising campaign that featured a boy itching for Christmas Day to arrive so he could give gifts to his parents.