Staff cuts on the cards at Tesco

In a statement issued today (22 January), Tesco said: “The role of People Manager and Compliance Manager will be removed from large stores and fulfilment centres in the UK. The role of Customer Experience Manager, present in 226 stores, will also be removed, giving line managers more direct accountability for customer service, in line with all other Tesco stores.

“The changes will affect 1,700 colleagues who will be supported to find alternative roles within the business wherever possible.

“As a result of these changes, 900 new roles with broader remits will be created as People Partners, Learning Partners and Colleague Relations Partners working across multiple sites throughout distribution, stores and fulfilment.”

So the net result of the changes is that several hundred jobs will go.

Matt Davies, Tesco UK and ROI CEO, said: “These changes remove complexity and will deliver a simpler, more helpful experience for colleagues and customers. We recognise these are difficult changes to make but they are necessary to ensure our business remains competitive and set up for the future.

“Our priority now is to support affected colleagues through these changes in any way we can. We hope to retain as many colleagues as possible in the new roles we have created and in the vacancies we currently have available.”

Tesco, in common with most supermarkets, has seen a growing number of customers opting for online buying with home delivery or click and collect – and this will have an impact on in-store sales and the requirement for in-store staff.