24th Apr 2015 09:45
LONDON (Alliance News) - J Sainsbury PLC Friday said it will cut 800 jobs as part of its restructuring plans, as it works to "improve efficiency and customer service in stores".
The supermarket chain said its department and deputy manager positions will be reviewed with more resource invested in other shop floor roles. Reducing the number of department manager roles will give in-store staff the opportunity to extend their hours or take additional shifts, meaning more customer-facing staff will be on hand to offer service, it said.
Sainsbury's aims to make GBP500 million in cost savings over the next three years to help fund investments in customer service, price and quality, and said the job cuts will help to achieve this.
It said consultation has begun in over 100 supermarkets on proposals to change the way they are restocked overnight. Night shifts will be replaced by early morning and evening shifts in some stores to improve availability for customers.
Redeployment opportunities will be available for most of the affected staff, but changes made are expected to result in 800 fewer roles, Sainsbury's said.
?These are exceptionally difficult decisions to make and we have not taken them lightly. I recognise that this will be a challenging time for many of our colleagues and we will do everything we can to support them and help them move through this period of uncertainty as quickly as possible," Retail and Operations Director Roger Burnley said in a statement.
?The formal consultation starts today and, where possible, we hope colleagues will opt to move to other roles or stores. We expect the new structures to be in place later this year and as a result, we will be set up to work more effectively together to better serve our customers,? he added.
J Sainsbury shares were up 0.3% at 267.90 pence Friday morning.
By Karolina Kaminska; [email protected] @KarolinaAllNews
Copyright 2015 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
Related Shares:
Sainsbury's