Retailers battling tight margins are still cutting jobs and losing their best-paid workers, dragging average pay growth down to just 1%, the sector's peak body says.
Retail NZ's 2026 Wages Guide puts the average retail wage at $30.94 an hour, up 1% on last year, a marked drop from the 3.4% increase recorded a year earlier. The guide draws on data across 21 roles, spanning frontline sales assistants and delivery drivers through to back-office positions in finance, logistics and store management.
Speaking on BNZ Business Breakfast, Retail NZ chief executive Carolyn Young said the softer figure mirrored the wider economy and the tough conditions facing retailers
"There's been a lot of restructuring and there's been a lot of staff that have been lost, both in the support offices and even on the shop floor," Young said. "You're losing some of those people at the higher end. You always need people on the shop floor, and so you're seeing that median wage stay roughly the same. But where those higher wages come in to lift that average wage, they've dropped out."
Young described an up-and-down year for the sector, with a strong start before conditions soured.
"We've had such a good start to the year in January and February, and then of course the Middle East crisis hit, and everyone went into that free fall position in March and April," she said.
"May saw us recover a bit, and then June was flat."
Wage growth across the sector has cooled to a third of last year's pace, with the peak body pointing to restructuring, tight margins and cautious shoppers. (Source: Breakfast)
Despite the slowdown, Young noted the average wage remained well above the minimum wage of $23.95 and the living wage of $28.95.
She said retailers were leaning on perks beyond base pay to reward workers. The survey behind the guide found more than half offered staff discounts and chances to upskill, 43% offered a commission or sales incentive, and one in five made KiwiSaver contributions above the minimum.
"The salary that you get isn't the totality of what you're earning," Young said. "All of those things provide a wider package that increases the overall benefit that the employees are getting."
With 222,400 people working across 29,505 retail businesses, Young said the sector remained a critical pillar of the economy.
"This year's Wages Guide reinforces that retail offers diverse, dynamic, and well-remunerated career pathways well beyond the traditional shop floor."
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