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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
National
Anna Wise

Barclays to give around 20,000 UK staff a 5.35% pay rise

Barclays has revealed a drop in its full-year earnings (PA) -

Around 20,000 UK staff at Barclays will get a more than 5% pay rise after a deal was reached with a trade union.

Unite said its members voted overwhelmingly in favour of the pay offer following negotiations with the banking giant.

The deal involves a 5.35% pay rise and is understood to benefit those in ranks below the vice president position in the UK, including within the head office and branches, and not those working in the investment bank.

Unite, which represents around 35,000 workers across the bank, said it marked a leading pay deal for the finance sector.

A spokesman for Barclays said: “We’re pleased to have reached agreement with Unite on our new pay proposal, following constructive discussions with the union and approval by its members.

“The pay deal reflects our continued focus on supporting our fair pay agenda, ensuring colleagues are recognised fairly, competitively and in a way that is sustainable for the organisation.”

The median total pay for Barclays UK employees was £60,603 in 2025.

The pay rise for workers comes after Barclays handed out around £2.2 billion in bonuses to eligible staff in 2025, 15% more than the prior year.

Bonuses are typically awarded to senior executives, investment bankers and those who contribute to the bank’s financial performance.

Chief executive CS Venkatakrishnan took home a £15 million pay packet, incorporating fixed pay and bonus awards – up from £11.6 million in 2024.

Barclays became the first UK bank to lift a cap on bankers’ bonuses in 2024, which was previously imposed under EU rules, giving its top bankers the chance to earn up to 10 times their base salary in bonuses.

At the time, it was expecting some 1,600 employees to be affected by the change, known as its “material risk-takers”.

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