Sainsbury’s & Argos To Cut 3,500 Jobs

Sainsbury’s & Argos To Cut 3,500 Jobs

The majority of jobs will be axed as part of a shakeup from Argos stores, which Sainsbury’s bought in 2016, as part of plans to immediately close 120 stores.

The UK’s second largest supermarket firm posted a pre-tax loss of £137 million for the past year, after being hit by £438 million in one-off costs related to store closures. In April, the supermarket chain had warned over a coronavirus hit to profits of more than £500 million despite a surge in grocery sales.

The news comes as tighter coronavirus restrictions come into force across England, although essential stores such as supermarkets remain open to the public.

Simon Roberts, chief executive of Sainsbury’s, said: “We are talking to colleagues today about where the changes we are announcing in Argos standalone stores and food counters impact their roles. We will work really hard to find alternative roles for as many of these colleagues as possible and expect to be able to offer alternative roles for the majority of impacted colleagues. Right here and now, I and all the team are focused on supporting and delivering for our customers in the days and weeks ahead.”

The job losses come as more than 2,500 jobs are set to go after the John Lewis Partnership and Lloyds Banking Group both announced major cuts on Wednesday.