Member Article

ASDA announces ‘radical’ restructure axing 1,360 jobs but creating thousands more

Asda has announced it will be “radically” restructuring its store management teams that are likely to result in 1,360 redundancies.

However, while 4,100 roles are affected as part of the restructure, Asda is creating 5,670 roles - up on the 5,000 positions it had initially expected to create when it floated the plans in May.

The positions will comprise 4,008 section lead roles and 1,622 section manager roles.

It has been reported that some of the 1,360 people expected to take redundancy will do so because they have not met the expected criteria for the new positions, which include senior roles managing ecommerce in stores.

Asda had initially forecast that up to 2,600 redundancies could be made.

Asda chief executive Andy Clarke said: “As much as it is my job, and privilege, to be chief executive of this business and to do what is right for Asda as a whole, this is one of the most difficult decisions I’ve had to make.

“Whilst I genuinely believe that it is the right decision for the future of Asda, knowing that it will result in valued colleagues leaving us is not easy.

“Every supermarket must adapt to the intense changes in UK retailing or they will get left behind. We spotted this nearly two years ago, responding with a new strategy and taking time to thoroughly examine our structures, test scenarios, talk to our colleagues and adjust our proposals accordingly. This thorough process has helped us to reach this difficult decision today.”

Asda’s spokesman said: “The way we manage our stores will be radically different from October. Stores have to be more flexible to deal with the pace of change. We’re upweighting the role of ecomm in-store, giving it a more senior level of management.”

The changes will also put more colleagues on the shop floor and remove back office administration tasks, he said.

The restructure will also enable Asda to make significant cost savings. The spokesman said an exact figure will be reported at its second quarter update next month, but it will run into millions.

Asda’s market share rose from 16.9% to 17.1% in the 12 weeks to June 22 while Tesco’s and Morrisons’ share continued to dip.

Photo: © Copyright Alex McGregor and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Clare Burnett .