Employment in the retail sector dropped by 2.4% year on year in the first quarter of 2019 in the UK, a new report by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) has revealed.
According to BRC top executive, Helen Dickinson, this decline in employment is equivalent to around 74,400 people losing jobs across the retail industry.
It has been attributed to structural changes in the industry triggered by the advent of digital sales channels.
'Changing Consumer Behaviour'
“Retail is undergoing a period of unprecedented change in response to new technologies and changing consumer behaviour. The investment required to successfully navigate this transformation is being held back by the rising cost of public policy," Dickinson commented.
"Over three million people rely directly on the retail sector for jobs, with many more working throughout the supply chain. Yet spiralling business costs pose a grave threat to these jobs – as recent administrations, CVAs, and store closures show,” she added.
Retail employment fell by 2.2% in the fourth quarter of 2018, which mirrors the trend of decline in employment in the sector indicated by data from the UK's Office for National Statistics (ONS).
The latest data from ONS shows a 2.1% and 2.9% decline in employment in the fourth and third quarter of 2018.
However, these figures are in stark contrast with the UK economy as a whole, which sees employment at the highest levels since ONS records began, the BRC pointed out.
Other Trends
Store growth remained steady at 2.3% in the first-quarter of 2018, with the same rate of change as in the previous quarter.
In the coming quarter, 17% of retailers indicated plans to reduce staff, above the comparable figure of 13% last year, and 67% are seeking to keep their staff numbers unchanged (down from 75% last year), the report revealed.
"While the number of stores rose, which was mainly driven by an increase in small format stores, many larger stores closed - resulting in a net job loss. And more jobs are likely to disappear unless there is a shift in Government policies," Dickinson added.
© 2019 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Dayeeta Das. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
