John Lewis and Waitrose to cut 1,000 jobs in stores
14 July 2021, 19:22
John Lewis and Waitrose are cutting 1,000 jobs in stores across the country, their owner has confirmed.
The John Lewis Partnership (JLP) told staff that the redundancies would be across both their department stores and supermarkets, with the intentions of simplifying store management.
It comes after John Lewis closed eight of its stores earlier in the year, also resulting in thousands of job losses, in a bid to secure £300 million in savings by 2023.
However, JLP said it would support employees in finding new roles within the business, hoping to minimise compulsory redundancies through voluntary redundancy as well as severance options.
The company currently runs 331 Waitrose stores and 34 John Lewis shops in the UK.
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A John Lewis Partnership spokesperson said: "We have announced to our partners our intention to simplify our management structures in Waitrose and John Lewis stores, which will allow us to reinvest in what matters most to our customers."
The retailer was hit hard throughout the pandemic, having also closed eight stores in 2020.
It confirmed a loss of £517m for the 2020-21 financial year, compared to a £146m profit the year before.
The high street giant was not the only one to feel the impact of the pandemic, though, after it was previously revealed that Marks and Spencer would be closing 30 stores due to financial losses too.
