British supermarket group Sainsbury's said it plans to cut about 1,500 roles, as it seeks cost savings to invest back into the business.
Sainsbury's, Britain's second-largest grocer after Tesco, said the jobs will go at its store support centre, its contact centre operations, in its in-store bakeries and in its general merchandise fulfilment network.
The group, which employs about 152,000, said where possible it will find alternative roles for impacted staff.
The changes form part of the group's new 'Next Level Sainsbury's' strategy, which CEO Simon Roberts detailed earlier this month.
That set a new cost savings target of £1 billion ($1.3 billion) over three years.
'Difficult But Necessary Decisions'
Simon Roberts, chief executive of Sainsbury’s stated, “As we move into the next phase of our strategy, we are making some difficult, but necessary decisions. The proposals we’ve been talking to teams about today are important to ensure we’re better set up to focus on the things that create a real impact for our customers, delivering good food for all of us and building a platform for growth. I know today’s news is unsettling for affected colleagues and we will do everything we can to support them.”
The retailer has proposed a simpler structure for some teams at its store support centre. The proposed changes will apply to retail, transformation, HR, supply chain and logistics teams to ensure it has the right expert support to deliver its new strategy and streamline some senior leadership structures.
News by Reuters, additional reporting by ESM.
