ONCE again John Lewis has shown why it is one of the most successful and highly-regarded employers in Swindon, not to mention the whole country.

This year’s bonus for employees, they were delighted to learn, is an excellent 15 percent.

Allowing staff a share in the fruits of their labour is both a decent thing to do and a very shrewd business move.

As anybody who visits John Lewis soon realises, its staff are enthusiastic, knowledgeable and helpful. They also clearly have a strong sense of their role in the organisation and their worth in that role.

This is because John Lewis recognises the importance of making each employee feel valued, and of reminding them in a multitude of ways that the whole business is diminished by any colleague who isn’t dedicated and professional.

Contrast this with far too many other employers in the retail sector and elsewhere, who regard staff as little more than serfs.

Such organisations pay their workers as little as possible and fob them off with the excuse that times are hard – while greedy senior executives and rich shareholders guzzle bonuses.

Their employees are often motivated to do no more than is absolutely necessary to retain their depressing, demoralising jobs – and who can blame them?

Such short-sighted businesses deserve to go to the wall, with their staff and client bases being absorbed by the likes of John Lewis.

Companies such as John Lewis prove that with the right attitude, businesses can not only weather stormy seas but do so in fine style.